Do pharmaceutical companies focus on curing diseases?

Question

Or are endless treatments that generate recurring revenue their primary focus. They spend billions of dollars a year in R&D, but have we actually found a cure for anything since Polio?
I'm far from a conspiracy freak, but think about the massive revenues and jobs that would be lost if a vaccine/cure for cancer was discovered.

Answer 1

I believe there is an 'assumption' in your question that reflects the truth here. The assumption is that a single molecule (a drug) can cure a disease. Unfortunately, virtually all chronic diseases have a MULTIFACTORIAL etiology (cause). Consequently, it is naive to believe that a single molecule can cure any chronic disease.

The strong belief/faith many have in modern pharmaceuticals (that is NOT consistent with reality today) is a product of the great 'miracle cures' that a few 'drugs' offered in the 1st half of the last century.

First, anti-biotics (and some vaccines, e.g. the polio vaccine) did appear to cure specific, deadly diseases. These diseases had ONE cause (an infectious agent) and a single drug (e.g. penicillin or the polio vaccine) created a truly miraculous cure.

Second, vitamin deficiencies were a huge cause of many terrible diseases (e.g. B1 deficiency caused Beri Beri, B3 deficiency caused Pellegra, and Vitamin D deficiency caused Rickets/Osteomalacia). Again, these diseases had a single cause and a single molecule could effectively treat it.

The result of these few miraculous cures was the belief that ALL diseases could be cured when we found/manufactured the right molecule (drug). (Note: in the examples given, all of the 'molecules of cure' are NATURALLY OCCURRING SUBSTANCES.)

However, today, almost all chronic diseases (heart disease, diabetes, cancer, auto-immune diseases, depression/affective disorders, neurodegenerative diseases, etc.) have a complex, multi-factorial cause. Consequently, no 'miracle drug' will likely cure any of them. Because of this reality (that few recognize or understand), pharmaceuticals and the medical profession have become focused/fixated on treating signs and symptoms. The net result of this has been dramatic increases in health care costs with a parallel decline in health.

Best wishes.

Answer 2

Don't look now, but there are vaccines that address cancers. The HPV vaccine will eventually have an impact on cervical cancer rates, and I understand there's something that may decrease the rate of prostate cancer. Unfortunately, "cancer" is not one disease, but a host of differnent ones, so there can't be a simple solution.
A huge amount of the revenues for drug companies comes from drugs that don't treat disease at all. Hypertension and hyperlipidemia are statistical risk factors, and modifiying those risks is quite useful, but doesn't cure anything.
Other illnesses are quite beyond our ability to cure anytime soon (but maybe in the future). Think of diabetes, for instance. Until somebody gets a good line on a potential cure, I'm pretty happy the drug companies do spend a lot on R&D for drugs that will control it and its complications better.
They do spend altogether too much, though, in my opinion, on "me-too" drugs purely for market-share where the new drug will not be an advance in treatment.

Answer 3

Depression....We were just discussing this topic with my Microbiology professor...antibiotic resistant bacterias have become a huge problem as well as the urgent need for improved vaccines...but these topics are not high on the list because they make the big profit with anti depressants....if I remember correctly she said something like seven knew drugs are being focused on and only two of them are not some form of an anti depressant :(

Answer 4

Both. They focus on curing diseases-if they can make money from it.