For most of us living in the developed world, our illnesses can be quickly remedied with a trip to a doctor and a prescription filled.

 

But for the more than one billion people whose lives are impaired by neglected tropical diseases, malaria, and tuberculosis (TB), this is not the case. Often there are no vaccines to prevent these diseases, no diagnostics to accurately identify them, and no treatments to alleviate the sometimes fatal symptoms.

 

Recognizing this significant unmet need, eight major pharmaceutical companies have joined with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), BIO Ventures for Global Health (BVGH), the U.S. National Institutes of Health, and others to form an unprecedented collaboration to share valuable intellectual property (IP) and expertise with the global health research community to promote development of new drugs, vaccines, and diagnostics to treat neglected tropical diseases, malaria, and TB.

 

Going beyond patent sharing, WIPO Re:Search offers the opportunity for neglected tropical disease researchers to work directly with scientists at pharmaceutical companies to advance research and development, and to more quickly and efficiently get new medical tools into the hands of those who need them most.

 

As WIPO Re:Search moves forward, the asset offerings from current partners will continue to grow and new providers are expected to join and add to the wealth of information, compounds, and services available, creating a more efficient and rapid response to the need for new medical tools to address neglected diseases. 

 

Participate in the Live Webcast of the WIPO Re:Search Launch

 

A roundtable discussion highlighting WIPO Re:Search will take place today, October 26, from 2:00-3:30p.m. Central Europe/1:00-2:30p.m. London/8:00-9:30a.m. Eastern U.S. The roundtable will feature high-level global health, academic, and industry representatives, including Margaret Chan, Director General of the WHO; Francis Gurry, Director General of WIPO; Don Joseph, COO of BVGH; David Brennan, CEO of AstraZeneca; Matern Lumbanga, Tanzanian Ambassador in Geneva; and Muhammad Ali Dhansay, Acting President of the South African Medical Research Council.

 

You can participate in the live webcast, which will include interactive question and answer sessions, by going to www.bvgh.org/WIPO-ReSearch-Webcast.aspx.

At BVGH, we often meet professionals with a variety of experiences and expertise who are interested in contributing to global health in a more hands-on way. Many are surprised to hear that they can make a meaningful impact without traveling across the globe to distribute medicines or build hospitals. Ilana Fogelman, Founder and Chief Operating Officer of LifeTech Research, has helped BVGH propel our mission forward by offering expert advice and a developing country perspective. We spoke with her about how she became interested in the field, what she has enjoyed about volunteering, and how others can do the same.

 

You worked at the FDA and on Wall Street before starting LifeTech Research, a medical technology due-diligence research firm. What got you interested in global health issues and why have you decided to donate your professional expertise to the field?

I'm originally from Brazil, so early on I was exposed to the burden of neglected diseases in developing countries. Brazil is a country of many realities: there are many people who have a great life, but there is another reality of people with less means and less access to healthcare. As a medical student in Brazil, I remember examining mothers and fathers with many children who could not provide for their families because they were suffering from heart disease caused by Chagas, which disproportionally impacts people living in impoverished rural areas. So for me, global health was always a matter of fairness, and I have always been interested in work that tries to give everyone the access to healthcare they need.

 

BVGH has greatly benefited from the work and resources you have donated. What have you taken away from your volunteer experience thus far?

I know that there is a lot of fantastic work going on in the global health field, but from the outside, it's very difficult to know what specifically has been successful and what has not. For me, getting involved with BVGH is a learning experience and an opportunity to understand how I can best apply my skill set to BVGH's mission and the global health field more broadly. For companies or individuals interested in giving back by volunteering their professional services and expertise to global health, I would suggest they contact BVGH or another organization and learn more about the organization's goals and needs before blindly offering services that might not fill a need. In a lot of ways, this approach is similar to international development, because those who know what will work and what won't are those living it. 

 

Why is it important to reach out to emerging market countries before investing time and resources into global health initiatives?

The local people are the ones who understand what the true unmet need is. And they can assess whether solutions are a good fit, even if they can't generate those solutions by themselves. And they know what the implementation challenges might be. So, it's hard for countries with the means to really develop an optimal solution without input from those who would ultimately be using it. I think that I have been able to meaningfully contribute to BVGH's work because I'm Brazilian and I know the local need, I understand the people. But, as I continue to volunteer my time and services, I hope that my experience in analyzing drugs will also come to contribute to the field as well.