Generating solutions

Personalized medicine should allow doctors to tailor treatment to  patients’ biological characteristics. This should mean better treatments with fewer  adverse reactions to drugs and other therapies, which could make for a much more efficient and costeffective healthcare system. However, current processes for developing and licensing medical technologies are a threat to the realization of this potential.

The project led by Drs. Christopher McCabe and Tania Bubela will give policymakers and investors the tools they need to make the right investment decisions on technology development, regulatory pathways, cost­effectiveness and benefit to the Canadian health system.

The project will develop approaches to properly reflect the views and values of Canadians in making decisions for introducing personalized medicine into cash­strapped healthcare systems. Bringing together experts in health economics, health policy, regulation, commerce, law and ethics, they will provide practical decisionmaking tools and completed analyses that will lead to informed policy­making. At the same time, by helping to establish the “ground rules” for the development of personalized medicine, the project will make Canada a less risky and more attractive base for developers, thereby supporting economic development in the Canadian life sciences industries.