We might be losing the fight against superbugs
What's the story
The global fight against superbugs is facing a major setback, experts have warned. The number of new drugs being developed to tackle these antibiotic-resistant infections has dropped by a staggering 35% in the last five years. This alarming trend was highlighted in a report by the Access to Medicine Foundation (AMF) and Wellcome Trust, which revealed that large pharmaceutical companies have reduced their development projects from 92 to just 60 medicines.
Health crisis
Drug resistance biggest threat to global healthcare
Jayasree K Iyer, CEO of AMF, has described drug resistance as the biggest threat to global healthcare. She said, "Overall, however, the R&D pipeline remains worryingly thin, and industry investment has lost momentum." The report also estimated that annual deaths linked to drug-resistant infections could double from four million today to over eight million by 2050.
Pharma efforts
GSK leading the way in antimicrobial R&D
The report found that UK's GSK is leading the way in antimicrobial resistance research and development (R&D) with 30 projects. It also noted that only three big pharma companies, GSK, Japan's Shionogi and Otsuka, are still investing in this area. US drugmaker Pfizer, which was joint first with GSK in 2021, has now fallen behind.
Market gap
AstraZeneca doesn't have an antibiotic portfolio
Notably, UK's biggest pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca doesn't have an antibiotic portfolio as infectious diseases have never been its focus. The report evaluated the efforts of 25 firms, including seven large research-based companies, 10 generic medicine makers, and eight smaller drug developers or biotechs. Low- and middle-income countries where infectious diseases hit hardest are most vulnerable to drug-resistant superbugs.
Global trend
1 in 6 bacterial infections resistant to antibiotics
Hospitals around the world have reported a worrying increase in common infections resistant to antibiotics. The World Health Organization (WHO) found that one in six lab-confirmed bacterial infections were resistant to antibiotic treatments in 2023. Between 2018 and 2023, over 40% of antibiotics lost effectiveness against common blood, gut, urinary tract, and sexually transmitted infections.