SuperbugsNo one wants to fund the development of new antibiotics

Published 15 June 2015

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria are like a ticking time bomb. The world needs new antibiotics. Scientists, veterinarians, and doctors have been describing this crisis for some time. So why is so little happening? The honest truth is money. No one wants to foot the bill. The pharmaceutical companies have to make money, which they generally do not do on antibiotics.

Too many people die from infections related to injuries as little as a splinter in their finger. Scientists think the Norwegian government’s strategy to address the problems posed by antibiotic-resistant bacteria is too narrow. Speeding up the development of new antibiotics will only happen when cancer can no longer be treated with modern medicine.

Magnus Steigedal thinks this is a major problem. Steigedal, director of the Norwegian Institute of Science and Technology’s (NTNU) Strategic Research Area on Health, is also head of the Norwegian section of a large EU project on the development of new antibiotics.

He is busy. More people die from antibiotic-resistant bacteria than from traffic accidents in Europe. About two million people die of tuberculosis every year. If antibiotics can no longer kill bacteria, a simple urinary tract infection can be fatal.

A ticking time bomb
Antibiotic-resistant bacteria are like a ticking time bomb. The world needs new antibiotics. Scientists, veterinarians, and doctors have been describing this crisis for some time. So why is it taking so long for pharmaceutical companies and governments to respond? Why is so little happening?

The honest truth is money. No one wants to foot the bill. The pharmaceutical companies have to make money, which they generally do not do on antibiotics.

“The biggest challenge is to make developing new antibiotics commercially viable. It may take twenty costly years to develop new medicine. Pharmaceutical companies aren’t generating much income when patients stop taking their medicine after a few days or weeks,” says Steigedal.

Lifelong medication use is favored
NTNU reports that pharmaceutical companies prioritize developing medicine for chronic diseases such as hypertension or diabetes. The reason is simple: the longer a patient is on medication, the more money the company earns on drug sales. Lifelong medication use is the best.

Pharmaceutical companies can foot the bill to find new antibiotics if their profits are sufficiently large that they can do it for economic reasons. That is not the case now after the financial crisis. They will also take on the cost if they have to, for example if a patient cannot receive costly cancer treatment due to infections, Steigedal says.

Diminished immunity from chemotherapy
Chemotherapy weakens immunity, which in turn increases the risk of serious infections in cancer patients. If patients cannot be treated with antibiotics, modern cancer treatment may in many cases not be possible to implement.