Abstract
Professor Henry Higgins in My Fair Lady said, 'Why can't a woman be more like a man?' Perhaps unintended, such narration extends to the reality of current drug development. A clear sex-gap exists in pharmaceutical research spanning from preclinical studies, clinical trials to post-marketing surveillance with a bias towards males. Consequently, women experience adverse drug reactions from approved drug products more often than men. Distinct differences in pharmaceutical response across drug classes and the lack of understanding of disease pathophysiology also exists between the sexes, often leading to suboptimal drug therapy in women. This review explores the influence of sex as a biological variable in drug delivery, pharmacokinetic response and overall efficacy in the context of pharmaceutical research and practice in the clinic. Prospective recommendations are provided to guide researchers towards the consideration of sex differences in methodologies and analyses. The promotion of disaggregating data according to sex to strengthen scientific rigour, encouraging innovation through the personalisation of medicines and adopting machine learning algorithms is vital for optimised drug development in the sexes and population health equity.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.