Libert G., Kacenelenbogen N., De Breucker S., Bensliman R.
General practitioners’ views on inappropriateprescribing for older patients: a qualitativestudy through focus groups
BMC Geriatrics
Link to the publication
Amaral-Garcia S., Nardotto M., Propper C., Valletti T.
Information and Vaccine Hesitancy: The Role of Broadband Internet
CESifo, Working paper
Link to the publication
Dewatripont M., Tirole J.
The Morality of Markets
Journal of Political Economy, Forthcoming 2024
Link to the publication
Goldman M., Sansonetti P.
Toward a healthier future: Lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic
Frontiers for Young Minds, in press, 2024
Cauchemez S., Cossu G., Delzenne N., Elinav E., Fassin D., Fischer A., Hartung T., Kalra D., Netea M., Neyts J., Rappuoli R., Saville M., Tenaerts P., Wright G., Sansonetti P., Goldman M.
Standing the test of COVID-19: charting the new frontiers of medicine
Frontiers in Science, in press, 2024
Dewatripont M.
A new Pharma industrial policy for Europe? Lessons from COVID-19
«in S. Tagliapietra and R. Veugelers (eds), Sparking Europe’s New Revolution: A Policy for Net Zero, Growth and Resilience, Bruegel Blueprint 33, 2023 »
Link to the publication
Dewatripont M.
Quel statut juridique et quelles missions pour des EHPAD à visage humain?
Revue d’économie financière, 2023
Link to the publication
Natalia, Y.A., Delporte, M., De Witte, D., Beutels, P., Dewatripont, M., Molenberghs, G.
Assessing the impact of COVID-19 passes and mandates on disease transmission, vaccination intention, and uptake: a scoping review
BMC Public Health, November 2023
Policymakers have struggled to maintain SARS-CoV-2 transmission at levels that are manageable to contain the COVID-19 disease burden while enabling a maximum of societal and economic activities. One of the tools that have been used to facilitate this is the so-called “COVID-19 pass”. We aimed to document current evidence on the effectiveness of COVID-19 passes, distinguishing their indirect effects by improving vaccination intention and uptake from their direct effects on COVID-19 transmission measured by the incidence of cases, hospitalizations, and deaths.
Link to the publication
Daems, S., Stevens, H., Dewatripont, M., Eichler, H-G., Goldman, M.
A novel approach to boost drug development in paediatric oncology
Nature Reviews Drug Discovery, August 2023
Despite major advances in cancer research, we are falling short in bringing innovative medicines to children with cancer. We propose a new business model to incentivize investors, private companies and public organizations to invest in drug development for paediatric cancers.
Link to the publication
Siotis G., Ornaghi C., Castanheira M.
Evolving market boundaries and competition policy enforcement in the pharmaceutical industry
European Journal of Law and Economics, February 2023
Competition investigations start with market definition, which establishes the perimeter of the competitive analysis. In this paper, we focus on the defnition of economic markets in the pharmaceutical industry, where the entry of generics in different therapeutic areas provides a sequence of quasi-natural experiments involving a signifcant competitive shock for the originator producer. We show how generic entry modifes price and non-price competitive constraints over time, generatinge market-wide efects.
Link to the publication
Goldman M.
Lymphadenopathy following COVID-19 vaccination: a wake-up call from case reports
British Journal of General Practice 73:109, 2023
Link to the publication
Goldman M.
Les vaccins ARN au-delà de la pandémie
Revue Médicale de Bruxelles, Vol 44, March April 2023
Link to the publication
Goldman M.
Que nous a appris la pandémie ? Les vaccins à ARN, une nanotechnologie en plein essor
The Conversation, January 2023
Les vaccins ARN anti-COVID ont ouvert une nouvelle ère en vaccinologie, celle des nanovaccins;
Ils devront être optimisés grâce à un meilleur partage des connaissances et de nouvelles recherches aux confins de la nanomédecine et de l’immunologie;
De nombreux aspects de la structure, de la fonction et des caractéristiques biologiques des nanoparticules restent à explorer afin d’exploiter pleinement leur potentiel;
Si les vaccins déployés durant la pandémie de COVID-19 présentaient une balance bénéfice-risque indubitablement positive, les nouveaux vaccins à ARN encapsulé devront continuer à faire l’objet d’une surveillance attentive de manière à identifier les patients à risque de développer des réactions indésirables.
Link to the publication
Goldman M.
Les vaccins à ARN: une victoire de l’intelligence collective
Louvain Médical, 2023
Link to the publication
Natali I., Dewatripont M., Ginsburgh V., Goldman M., Legros P.
Prescription opioids and economic hardship in France
European Journal of Health Economics, 2023
Link to the publication
Amaral-Garcia S., Nardotto M., Propper C., Valletti T.
Mums Go Online: Is the Internet Changing the Demand for Health Care?
The Review of Economics and Statistics, 2022
We study the effect of Internet diffusion on childbirth procedures performed in England between 2000 and 2011. We show that broadband Internet access increased cesarean sections (C-sections): mothers living in areas with better Internet access are 2.5% more likely to obtain a C-section. The effect is driven by first-time mothers who are 6% more likely to obtain a C-section. The increased C-section rate is not accompanied by changes in health care outcomes; thus health care costs increased with no corresponding medical benefits. We show evidence documenting the growing importance of the Internet as a source of health-related information.
Link to the publication
Goldman M. and Martin C., eds.
Les vaccins, ce que tu dois savoir.
Ouvrage collectif paru chez Marque Belge, 2022
Goldman M.
Que nous a appris la pandémie ?
Le Journal du Médecin, November 2022
Dans son dernier ouvrage, “La médecine d’après”, le Pr Michel Goldman analyse la crise sanitaire due au covid-19 comme un moment de basculement dont il faut tirer les leçons et qui a remis en perspective la médecine du futur.
Link to the publication
Goldman M.
Covid long: portrait du grand imitateur du 21ème siècle
Le Journal du Médecin, October 2022
Le Pr Michel Goldman (Professeur émérite d’immunologie et président de l’Institut interdisciplinaire pour l’innovation en santé à l’ULB) vient de publier un article consacré au Covid long dans Frontiers of Medicine. Il en commente les grandes lignes pour le journal du Médecin.
Link to the publication
Dewatripont M.
Which policies for vaccine innovation and delivery in Europe?
International Journal of Industrial Organization, September 2022
Link to the publication
Goldman M., Dewatripont M., Fischer A.
L’innovation thérapeutique au service du bien commun
Médecine/Sciences, Med Sci (Paris), 2022
Link to the publication
Dewatripont M., Fischer A., Goldman M.
Improving the innovation/access trade-off for rare diseases in the EU after Covid-19
VoxEU, 29 September 2022
Link to the article
Goldman M.
Le Covid long, la grande imitatrice du 21ème siècle?
Frontiers in Medicine, September 2022
Les multiples défis posés par le Covid long :
- Les symptômes multiples rendant le diagnostic difficile: Le COVID long peut prendre de multiples formes qui miment de nombreuses autres maladies, de nature infectieuse (la maladie de Lyme par exemple) ou autre (maladie pulmonaire, cardiaque, neuropsychiatrique, encéphalomyélite myalgique, fatigue chronique, fibromyalgie, lupus érythémateux disséminé, etc…). A cet égard, le Covid long fait songer à la syphilis qui s’est vue dénommée la « grande imitatrice » à la fin du 19è siècle.
- Des causes obscures qui entretiennent les doutes sur la réalité du syndrome: Il est important de savoir que le Covid long peut survenir même après une phase aiguë courte ne nécessitant pas l’hospitalisation. Plusieurs théories ont été avancées pour expliquer sa survenue. La persistance du virus SARS-CoV-2 dans certains tissus a été évoquée mais la relation avec les symptômes est loin d’être établie. La réactivation d’autres virus, en particulier le virus d’Epstein-Barr qui cause la mononucléose infectieuse, pourrait également intervenir. Des désordres immunologiques pourraient aussi jouer un rôle important, en particulier des réactions auto-immunes.
- Des traitements empiriques: La vaccination semble bien réduire les risques de développer un Covid long et pourrait même avoir une action bénéfique partielle une fois le Covid long installé. L’effet des médicaments antiviraux comme le Paxlovid est très controversé depuis que l’on sait que ce traitement s’accompagne assez fréquemment de rebonds du virus. Pour le reste, on en est réduit à des traitements symptomatiques qui s’inspirent souvent de ceux utilisés dans le syndrome de fatigue chronique.
- Covid long et santé publique : une catastrophe annoncée: Comme le souligne un récent éditorial du New England Journal of Medicine ( https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp2109285 ), le Covid long sera à l’origine d’une situation désastreuse en termes de santé publique si une action vigoureuse n’est pas entreprise dès maintenant, à commencer par la mise en œuvre de recherches multidisciplinaires pour en élucider les fondements. L’économiste pointe, dans une tribune au « Monde », les succès et les échecs de la stratégie européenne de soutien à la recherche pharmaceutique, d’achat et de distribution des vaccins menée pendant la pandémie de Covid-19.
Dewatripont M.
Quel bilan tirer de la vaccination anti-Covid sur le plan industriel et économique?
Le Monde, July 2022
L’économiste pointe, dans une tribune au « Monde », les succès et les échecs de la stratégie européenne de soutien à la recherche pharmaceutique, d’achat et de distribution des vaccins menée pendant la pandémie de Covid-19.
Link to the publication
Goldman M.
New body must make antiviral drug available.
Financial Times, 5 August 2022.
Link to the article
Goldman M.
La médecine d’après. Leçons du Covid-19.
Editions de l’Académie royale de Belgique, collection Regards, Bruxelles, 2022.
Dewatripont M., Eyskens M., Goldman M., Lekeux P., Schokkaert E.
Healthcare: Towards a global approach. In “Book celebrating 250th anniversary of the Royal Academy of Belgium”
Académie Royale de Belgique, 2022.
Goldman M.
The Safety of Anti-SARS-CoV-2 Vaccines: Vigilance Is Still Required
Journal of Clinical Medicine, February 2022
The opinion I put forward in this paper is that attention must continue to be paid to clinical observations compatible with a detrimental effect of anti-SARS-CoV-2 in certain diseases of immunological nature. Using the example of the atypical thrombocytopenic thromboses caused by adenoviral-vector-based vaccines, I argue that usual post-marketing pharmacovigilance programs may fail in identifying very rare vaccine-related disorders. Since the robust protective immunity induced by mRNA vaccines is related to their distinct capacity to induce strong stimulation of T follicular helper cells, I suggest that the safety of mRNA vaccines should be further assessed by appropriately designed epidemiological and mechanistic studies focusing on lymphoproliferative and autoimmune diseases in which T follicular helper cells were found to play a key role.
Link to the publication
Mermelstein S., Stevens H.
TRIPS to Where? A Narrative Review of the Empirical Literature on Intellectual Property Licensing Models to Promote Global Diffusion of Essential Medicines
Pharmaceutics, January 2022
The recent Ebola and COVID-19 outbreaks highlight growing concerns regarding the use of TRIPS flexibilities and the limited success of voluntary mechanisms in promoting access to medicines in the Global South amidst health crises. This review aims at describing the state-of-the-art empirical research on IP-related options and voluntary mechanisms applied by emerging PPPs to guarantee timely and affordable access to EM in LMICs and reflect on both models as access paradigms. Some suggestions are put forward for future research paths on the basis of these analyses and in response to contemporary debates on waiving key IP rights on COVID-19 therapies, diagnostics, and vaccines.
Link to the publication
Goldman M.
L’intelligence collective au service des patients
Pharmaceutiques, December 2021
«C’est un grand monsieur de la science. » Et ce n’est autre que le professeur d’immunologie Alain Fischer, président du Conseil d’orientation de la stratégie vaccinale en France, qui le dit. Médecin de formation, Michel Goldman a vu naître sa vocation dès l’enfance, au fil d’un quotidien rythmé par les consultations de son père, médecin généraliste, au domicile familial. Ce qui n’a pas empêché “Monsieur IMI” de bifurquer vers d’autres directions en présidant aux destinées de deux grandes institutions. Malgré sa “retraite” académique de l’ULB en 2020, Michel Goldman reste actif sur plusieurs fronts, particulièrement celui de la pandémie.
Link to the publication
Donckier V., Estache A., Liberale G., Goldman M.
Prioritization of Surgery in Cancer Patients During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Annals of Surgery, November 2021
The prioritization of surgical oncology over other elective interventions during COVID-19 has failed to preserve the quality of care in oncology and will likely lead to an increase of cancer-related mortality in the coming years. We propose five components for systems to improve the organization of surgical oncology during future crises, namely (1) a multidisciplinary governance structure employing predictive models and risk/benefit evaluations, (2) predefined quality objectives based on measurable markers (regularly reviewed and adapted), (3) temporary flexibility in therapeutic algorithms and authorization procedures (with associated safeguards), (4) systems to ensure access to transparent, apolitical information, and (5) explicit, dedicated logistical surgical capacities to optimize coordination and resource allocation.
Link to the publication
Verbeeck J., Vandersmissen G., Peeters J., Klamer S., Hancart S., Lernout T., Dewatripont M., Godderis L., Molenberghs G.
Confirmed COVID-19 Cases per Economic Activity during Autumn Wave in Belgium
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, November 2021
Some occupational sectors, such as human health and care, food service, cultural and sport activities, have been associated with a higher risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection than other sectors. To curb the spread of SARS-CoV-2, it is preferable to apply targeted non-pharmaceutical interventions on selected economic sectors, rather than a full lockdown. However, the effect of these general and sector-specific interventions on the virus circulation has only been sparsely studied. We assess the COVID-19 incidence under different levels of non-pharmaceutical interventions per economic activity during the autumn 2020 wave in Belgium.
Link to the publication
Dewatripont M.
Covid vaccination experiences
Centre for Economic Policy Research, October 2021
The approval of several effective covid vaccines in record time shifted the emphasis in rich countries away from availability and the logistics of delivery to the issue of vaccine hesitancy. This column looks at vaccination rates across countries, with a special focus on the French experience. It finds that the introduction of a ‘corona pass’ had a much greater impact on France’s vaccination rate than it did in some other countries, possibly in part due to the way it was announced by President Macron.
Link to the publication (Summary available on VoxEU)
Janssens R., Lang T., Vallejo A., Galinsky J., Plate A., Morgan K., Cabezudo E., Silvennoinen R., Coriu D., Badelita S., Irimia R., Anttonen M., Manninen R-L., Schoefs E., Vandebroek M., Vanhellemont A., Delforge M., Stevens H., Simoens S., Huys I.
Patient Preferences for Multiple Myeloma Treatments: A Multinational Qualitative Study
Frontiers in Medicine, July 2021
Investigational and marketed drugs for the treatment of multiple myeloma (MM) are associated with a range of characteristics and uncertainties regarding long term side-effects and efficacy. This raises questions about what matters most to patients living with this disease. This study aimed to understand which characteristics MM patients find most important, and hence should be included as attributes and levels in a subsequent quantitative preference survey among MM patients.
Link to the publication
Goldman M., Hermans C.
Thrombotic thrombocytopenia associated with COVID-19 infection or vaccination: Possible paths to platelet factor 4 autoimmunity
PLOS Medicine, May 2021
Thrombotic thrombocytopenia mimicking heparin-induced thrombocytopenia has been observed in patients with severe Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) or after immunisation with adenoviral vector-based vaccines against Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The authors of the article discuss the pathogenesis of the autoimmune response to platelet factor 4 (PF4) that underlies these disorders.
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EU Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority: How should the EU prepare and respond to future cross border health threats?
In 2020, the European Commission announced the EU “Health Emergency and Preparedness Response Authority” (HERA) as part of a broader set of proposals for an EU Health Union. In response to Covid-19, the proposals aim to build a Europe that is better prepared for the next cross-border health threat. With EUR 5.1 billion over a seven-year period (2021- 2027), the Health Union’s budget is ten times larger than the last health budget. This report sets out the role that the EU HERA could fill in the evolving European Health landscape. It is informed by interviews with over 40 experts from research organisations, civil society, think tanks and industry, based in Brussels, EU Member States and beyond. Although consultation was a crucial element of the project, the report recommendations are independent and reflect the opinions of the Federation of European Academies of Medicine (FEAM) and Wellcome Trust.
Link to the publication
Goldman M.
Cleaning Up Europe’s Vaccine Mess
Project Syndicate, April 2021
The success of the US government’s efforts to develop, produce, and distribute COVID-19 vaccines reflects several factors. If the European Union wants to reproduce a similar initiative in Europe, mobilizing sufficient financial resources will be a significant obstacle – though perhaps not the biggest one.
Link to the publication
Manifesto: Anti-viral antibodies in the European anti-COVID-19 response: Time to catch up!
March 2021
Neutralizing monoclonal antibodies targeting the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein are increasingly recognized as important tools to bridge the gap created by the vaccine shortage and slow pace of vaccination across the European Union. Manifesto published by Michel Goldman and a collective of European scientists who call for the EU Commission to invest in anti-viral antibodies as part of an integrated Public Health strategy.
Goldman M.
Viewpoint: Lessons from Operation Warp Speed can help overcome EU vaccines crisis
Science|Business, February 2021
As the problem of COVID-19 vaccines supplies so potently illustrates, it is time to rethink the EU’s pandemic preparedness strategy. More support is needed for late stage clinical development and large scale manufacturing.
Link to the publication
Amaral-Garcia S., Nardotto M., Propper C., Valletti T.
How the internet is changing the demand for healthcare
VoxEU, December 2020
The internet is fundamentally changing the relationship between healthcare suppliers and demanders, leading to concerns that social media will increase demand for unnecessary and unsafe products and reduce demand for appropriate treatments. This column looks at demand in the UK for caesarean section births, and finds that mothers with better, faster access to the internet are 2.5% more likely to have a C-section than mothers living in areas with worse internet access. This effect comes from an increase in elective C-sections, with no effect of the internet on the likelihood of having an emergency C-section.
Link to the publication
Goldman M.
Five things you need to know about: mRNA vaccine safety
Horizon Magazine, December 2020
The world’s first mRNA vaccine has begun its rollout after being produced at unprecedented speed as part of the global effort to end the Covid-19 pandemic. In trials these vaccines have shown to be at least 94% effective at preventing people from falling ill with Covid-19. But how safe is this new technology? In an interview given to Horizon: the EU Research & Innovation magazine our co-director, Michel Goldman sheds light on five key facts about the mRNA vaccines.
Link to the publication
Neunez M., Nasif S., Smeesters P., Stevens H.
Human papillomavirus, a dangerous virus – but a vaccine can save you!
Frontiers for Young Minds, December 2020
van Overbeeke E., Michelsen S., Toumi M., Stevens H., Trusheim M., Huys I., Simoens S.
Market access of gene therapies across Europe, USA, and Canada: challenges, trends, and solutions
Drug Discovery Today, November 2020
A limited number of gene therapy medicinal products (GTMPs) have received marketing authorization (MA), of which some have been withdrawn, and even less have gained reimbursement. Many challenges that complicate GTMP market access can occur across multiple jurisdictions and decision-making contexts, but some reimbursement challenges are specific to jurisdictions. The importance of these challenges will vary according to the specific therapy being developed, the country where market access is sought, and the efforts made by developers, regulators and payers to implement solutions to overcome these barriers. This review could alert developers to challenges associated with GTMP MA and how to address them.
Link to the publication
Fischer A., Goldman M., Grass E.
Vaccin contre le Covid-19 : « La confiance est le pivot de toute stratégie vaccinale »
Le Monde, November 2020
Public trust is the backbone of any immunization strategy. In the opinion piece published in Le Monde, Michel Goldman, Alain Fischer and Etienne Grass argue that building confidence of the population will be one of the biggest challenges in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
Link to the publication
Dewatripont M.
« C’est le Covid-19 qui tue l’économie, bien plus que les mesures de confinement »
Le Monde, November 2020
The current health situation in many European countries is discouraging. The “containment fatigue” has led the authorities to delay taking drastic measures to halt the rise of the virus. A key reason for this delay is the fear of paralysing economic activity. In an article published in the LE Monde, Mathias Dewatripont explains how economic calculations can optimise the response to the spread of the pandemic.
Link to the publication
Goldman M., Silva M.
Reflections on the Collaborative Fight Against COVID-19
Frontiers in Medicine, September 2020
Clinical trials to identify efficient treatments against COVID-19 flourish worldwide without much attention to patients’ voice so far. As therapeutic interventions in the early phase of the disease are attracting more and more interest, our colleagues Michel Goldman and Mitchell Silva argue that patients’ organizations should be more involved in the design of clinical protocols in order to define the most relevant end-points and assess the risk-benefit balance of new therapies.
Link to the publication
Aghion P., Amaral-Garcia S., Dewatripont M., Goldman M.
How to strengthen European industries’ leadership in vaccine research and innovation
VoxEU, September 2020
While EU countries have been able to rely on a more resilient social model and a science-based approach in managing the Covid crisis more successfully so far than the US, Europe has fallen short in matching the US effort to incentivise Covid vaccine innovation. This is due to a lower level of financial investment and also an inability to ensure coordination across different (national and European) funding schemes. This column calls for the creation of a European equivalent to the US Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority to tackle these problems, thereby strengthening European industries’ leadership in vaccine research and innovation.
Link to the publication
Goldman M., Kazatchkine M.
Viewpoint: anti-viral antibodies must be prioritised in the EU coronavirus response
Science|Business, August 2020
The European Commission’s work to secure access to potential COVID-19 vaccines is welcome, but other therapies are needed to end the pandemic and negotiations with European manufacturers of anti-viral antibodies should not be further delayed. Read the plea in favor of the EU support for late-phase development of anti-viral antibodies.
Link to the publication
Stevens H., Neunez M.
COVID-19, The Quarantine-Virus Disease
Frontiers for Young Minds, July 2020
Explaining COVID-19 to children is another key mission of scientists. With that aim, our colleagues have published an article in Frontiers for Young Minds, an open access scientific journal that brings the latest research to school kids between 8-15 years old.
Link to the publication
Goldman M., Kazatchkine M.
The Case for COVID-19 Antibody Therapies
Project Syndicate, July 2020
Given the limitations of existing drugs and the uncertainty regarding vaccines, the world must also focus on developing new weapons to target the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19. Besides anti-viral chemical drugs, genetically engineered antibodies might be ideal for this purpose. Read the article published in Project Syndicate by Michel Kazatchkine and our co-director, Michel Goldman, where they call for more funds to be allocated towards the research on antibody treatments.
Link to the publication
Natali I., Amaral-Garcia S.
COVID-19 Pandemic and Pollution: Evidence from Belgium and France
Learning from the curve, June 2020
Fighting the COVID-19 pandemic requires a better understanding of the so-called ‘risk factors’ associated with the spread of the virus. Identifying the driving forces favoring the diffusion of the virus is a topic of primary importance, not only to contain the rapid spread of the current pandemic, but also to prevent the occurrence of future pandemics. Research conducted by Ilaria Natali and Sofia Amaral-Garcia shows that pollution may be an important factor contributing to the diffusion of the virus and as such should be taken into account by policy-makers.
Link to the publication
Amaral-Garcia S.
Medical Device Companies and Doctors: Do their Interactions Affect Medical Treatments?
ECARES working paper, June 2020
Medical device companies may play a role in the type of treatments provided to patients, namely by influencing physicians to use their products. Physicians interact frequently with medical device representatives, which raises concerns that these relationships might bias healthcare providers. Using data on payments from medical device companies to physicians combined with hospital discharge datasets, Sofia Amaral-Garcia assesses the impact of payments on medical treatments.
Link to the publication
Kazatchkine M., Goldman M., Vincent J-L.
Antibody-based therapies for COVID-19: Can Europe move faster?
PLOS Medicine, May 2020
In the article published by PLOS, Michel Goldman, Michel Kazatchkine and Jean-Louis Vincent call on the medical and scientific European community to urgently coordinate research efforts on passive immunotherapy, share data and protocols in real-time, and pool efforts to decrease as much as possible the time for validating immunotherapy with donated plasma.
Link to the publication
Gilbert M., Dewatripont M., Muraille E., Platteau J-P., Goldman M.
Preparing for a responsible lockdown exit strategy
Nature Medicine, April 2020
In just a few weeks’ time, leaders across the globe will have to start making decisions about lifting lockdown policies, with considerable social, economic and political consequences. In the article published in Nature Medicine our co-directors, Mathias Dewatripont and Michel Goldman, and their colleagues from ULB and UNamur, propose a framework for what is arguably the most difficult health challenge that governments have faced since the beginning of this century: a responsible lockdown exit strategy.
Link to the publication
Dewatripont M., Goldman M., Muraille E., Platteau J-P.
Rapidly identifying workers who are immune to COVID-19 and virus-free is a priority for restarting the economy
VoxEU, March 2020
In the article published in VoxEU our co-directors, Mathias Dewatripont and Michel Goldman, emphasize the need for mass serological screening in order to restart the economy as fast as possible. They describe how a combination of two currently available tests could identify people who are both free from COVID-19 and immune to it, and thus are safe to go back to work. A targeted scaling-up of procedures for both tests will help maintain vital services and accelerate the relaunch of the economy, while minimising the risk of the epidemic recurring after restrictions are lifted.
Link to the publication
Grine L, Janssens R, van Overbeeke E, Derijcke D, Silva M, Delys B, Dusart I, Aertsen V, Mertens de Wilmars M, Robaczewska J, Stevens H.
Improving Patient Involvement in the Lifecycle of Medicines: Insights From the EUPATI BE Survey
Frontiers in Medicine, February 2020
EUPATI Belgium (EUPATI.be) is an informal gathering of local partners who are interested in improving patient involvement in healthcare innovation and medicines research and development. Authors used a nation-wide survey to inquire into Belgian stakeholders’ perception on patient involvement. To this end, an electronic survey was available in French, Dutch and English, and accessible for 11 months. Rresults will help to understand and tackle the various barriers that currently hamper patient involvement, whilst highlighting the need for a collaborative landscape from the multi-stakeholder perspective.
Link to the publication
Dewatripont M., Ginsburgh V., Goldman M., Legros P., Natali I.
Prescription Opioids and Economic Hardship in France
IDEAS, February 2020
This paper studies how opioid analgesic sales are related to socioeconomic conditions in France. Using the OpenHealth database on prescription opioid retail sales at the department level from 2008 to 2017, the authors show that increases in the poverty rate induce more sales: a one percentage point increase in poverty produces, approximately, a ten percent increase in opioid use. The analysis further shows that opioid use is positively related to the share of middle-aged people and the share of individuals with basic education only, while it is negatively related to population density.
Link to the publication
Neunez M., Goldman M., and Ghezzi P.
Online Information on Probiotics: Does It Match Scientific Evidence?
Frontiers in Medicine, January 2020
Probiotics are over-the-counter products marketed for enhancing human health. Online information has been key in their worldwide promotion. However, only few rigorous clinical studies have met the stringent criteria required to establish the efficacy and safety of probiotics. The present study was undertaken to assess the information quality of webpages referring to probiotics and to compare the recommendations available online with the information collected from trusted scientific sources. The authors evaluated 150 webpages returned by Google searching “probiotics” in terms of typology of website, health information quality based on the JAMA score and the HONcode certification, as well as completeness of the information.
Link to the publication
Fischer A., Dewatripont M. and Goldman M.
Benefit Corporation: a path to affordable gene therapies?
Nature Medicine, November 2019
With the growing number of efficient gene therapies on the market, now is the time to take actions to ensure reasonable pricing of gene therapy products. In the article published in Nature Medicine, Alain Fischer, Mathias Dewatripont and Michel Goldman propose to incentivize gene therapy companies to adopt a status of certified B corporations that translates their corporate social responsibility into concrete commitments.
Link to the publication
Edited by Stevens H. and Goldman M
eBook ‘Public-Private Partnerships as Drivers of Innovation in Healthcare’ (2019).
Frontiers for Medicine., November 2019
Multi-stakeholder collaborations involving partners from public and private sectors are essential to address global health challenges and to move precision medicine forward. This eBook assembles a collection of papers which either illustrate recent achievements or discuss new perspectives offered by public-private partnerships in healthcare.
Link to the publication
Janssens R, Russo S, van Overbeeke E, Simoens, S., Stevens H, et al.
Patient Preferences in the Medical Product Life Cycle: What do Stakeholders Think? Semi-Structured Qualitative Interviews in Europe and the USA
Patient, October 2019
Patient preferences (PP), which are investigated in PP studies using qualitative or quantitative methods, are a growing area of interest to the following stakeholders involved in the medical product lifecycle: academics, health technology assessment bodies, payers, industry, patients, physicians, and regulators. However, the use of PP in decisions along the medical product lifecycle remains limited. As the adoption of PP heavily relies on these stakeholders, knowledge of their perceptions of PP is critical. This study aimed to characterize stakeholders’ attitudes, needs, and concerns with respect to PP in decision making along the medical product lifecycle.
Link to the publication
Janssens R, Huys I, van Overbeeke E, Whichello C, Harding S, Kübler J, Juhaeri J, Ciaglia A, Simoens S, Stevens H, et al.
Opportunities and challenges for the inclusion of patient preferences in the medical product life cycle: a systematic review.
BMC medical informatics and decision making, October 2019
The publication aimed to understand the potential roles, reasons for using PP and the expectations, concerns and requirements associated with PP in industry processes, regulatory benefit-risk assessment (BRA) and marketing authorization (MA), and HTA and reimbursement decision-making. A systematic review of peer-reviewed and grey literature published between January 2011 and March 2018 was performed. Consulted databases were EconLit, Embase, Guidelines International Network, PsycINFO and PubMed. Literature was analyzed using NVivo (QSR international).
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Bolliger L, Stevens H.
From opioid pain management to opioid crisis in the USA: How can Public-Private Partnerships help?
Frontiers in Medicine, May 2019
The current opioid crisis in the USA arose from (at first) successful opioid pain management in three waves, starting in the’90s. Today, USA patients consume opioid drugs on a massive scale. Considering their potential for tolerance, as well as their potential for lethality in relatively small overdose, the overuse of opioids form an urgent threat to public health in the USA. Since the opioid crisis is a complex phenomenon, several stakeholders are needed to tackle the problem. Both public and private stakeholders should collaborate, e.g., in Public-Private Partnerships. Those collaborations should focus on different aspects related to the opioid crisis such as medical and societal, as well as economical and regulatory issues. Additionally, collaborations should cover interdisciplinary education and training of various healthcare actors involved.
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Neunez M., Goldman M., Goldman S. and Lambert P.
Vaccines, Shots That Protect You
Frontiers for Young Minds, February 2019
Tomorrow, your mother will take you to the doctor to receive your vaccines. Why do you need these shots since you are healthy and have already received some shots when you were just a baby? In this article, you will discover the reasons why booster vaccines are crucial, to protect you, your brothers and sisters but also your classmates and your friends.
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Janssens R., van Overbeeke E., Stevens H. et al.
Patient Involvement in the Lifecycle of Medicines According to Belgian Stakeholders: the Gap Between Theory and Practice
Frontiers in Medicine, October 2018
Patient involvement is often acknowledged as an important aspect of the lifecycle of medicines. In view of the diversity of stakeholders and types of decisions in which patients might be involved, an in-depth understanding of these stakeholders’ views toward involving patients in the lifecycle of medicines is essential. The barriers identified in this study hamper transitioning patient involvement from theory to practice. Bridging this gap requires addressing the identified barriers and unresolved questions surrounding the right methodology for involving the “right patients” to involve and means to increase patient knowledge. There is a need to focus on assessing the value of methods that allow to indirectly capture patients’ perspective both in the context of development as well as in the context of evaluation.
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Stevens H., Huys I.
“Intellectual Property in Early-Phase Research Public–Private Partnerships in the Biomedical Sector“, The Cambridge Handbook of Public-Private Partnerships, Intellectual Property Governance, and Sustainable Development
Cambridge University Press, September 2018, pp 109-140
Public–private partnerships (PPPs) play an increasingly prominent role in addressing global development challenges. United Nations agencies and other organizations are relying on PPPs to improve global health, facilitate access to scientific information, and encourage the diffusion of climate change technologies. For this reason, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development highlights their centrality in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). At the same time, the intellectual property dimensions and implications of these efforts remain underexamined. Through selective case studies, this illuminating work contributes to a better understanding of the relationships between PPPs and intellectual property considered within a global knowledge governance framework, including innovation, capacitybuilding, technological learning, and diffusion. Linking global governance of knowledge via intellectual property to the SDGs, this is the first book to chart the activities of PPPs at this important nexus.
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Dewatripont M., Goldman M.
Free Drug Samples and the Opioid Crisis
The New England Journal of Medicine, August 2018
The provision of free drug samples for promotional purposes is common in the United States. However, there is evidence that free samples often do not reach the intended patient population, reduce patients’ adherence to their treatment plans, and eventually increase health care costs. In the case of prescription opioids, free samples can lead to even more dramatic consequences. Opioids are potent stimulators of the reward system of the brain, so getting a free “taste” of these medications can precipitate compulsive and long-lasting seeking of substances that reproduce their effects. With a view of containing the opiod crisis, Michel Goldman and Mathias Dewatripont call U.S. policymakers to urgently consider a ban on the practice of providing free starter coupons for narcotic and psychotropic substances.
Link to the letter
Arif N., Al-Jefri M., Harb Bizzi I., Boitano Perano G., Goldman M., Haq I., Leng Chua K., Mengozzi M., Neunez M., Smith H. and Ghezzi P.
Fake News or Weak Science? Visibility and Characterization of Antivaccine Webpages Returned by Google in Different Languages and Countries
Frontiers in Immunology, June 2018
Acceptance and uptake of vaccination is important for reaching public health targets. The information available, either from books, television news, newspaper articles, or online sources, has a major impact on how the public perceives vaccines. It has often been pointed out that antivaccine information available on the Internet has a high prevalence and could impact negatively vaccination decisions. The purpose of the study was to analyze the information available to the public on the link between vaccines and autism. The study provides an approach to monitor vaccine-related information on the web.
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Stevens H., Neunez M., Laokri S. and Goldman M.
Fostering interdisciplinarity to educate the next generation of global health actors: a key mission of the newly created I3h Institute
Geneva Health Form 2018, 7th edition, April 2018
Collaborative innovation is pivotal to move global health forward. There is a critical need to develop among all stakeholders a holistic vision of the multiple factors that intervene in the translation of scientific knowledge into accessible and affordable care.
Link to the poster
Laokri S. and Stevens H.
What role can novel technologies and practices play in the provision of equitable access to quality care for tuberculosis (TB) patients in low- and middle-income countries
Despite remarkable progress attributable to the TB control strategy, shortening the patients’ pathways and reducing the economic burden of disease remain major global health challenges.
Link to the poster
Stevens H. and Huys I.
Innovative Approaches to Increase Access to Medicines in Developing Countries
Frontiers in Medicine, December 2017
Access to essential medicines is problematic for one third of all persons worldwide. Several innovative approaches, based on partnerships, intellectual property, and pricing, are used to stimulate innovation, promote healthcare delivery, and reduce global health disparities. No single approach suffices, and therefore stakeholders need to further engage in partnerships promoting knowledge and technology transfer in assuring essential medicines to be manufactured, authorized, and distributed in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) in an effort of making them available at affordable and acceptable conditions.
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Stevens H., Huys I., Debackere K., Goldman M., Stevens P., Mahoney R.
Vaccines: Accelerating Innovation and Access
Global Challenges Report, WIPO, 2017
The analysis aims to put into perspective debates around health innovation and the availability of health technologies in developing countries, especially with respect to the role of IP. In particular, it provides an overview of how IP has been used to meet global health challenges in the vaccines field, and considers whether lessons can be drawn to inform other important health technologies.
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Laokri S.
Collaborative Approaches and Policy Opportunities for Accelerated Progress toward Effective Disease Prevention, Care and Control: Using the Case of Poverty Diseases to Explore Universal Access to Affordable Health Care.
Frontiers in Medicine, 2017 Aug 25;4:130. doi: 10.3389/fmed.2017.00130. eCollection 2017.
“Despite a large political commitment and mobilization efforts from funding, the global development goal of financial protection for health—newly adopted in TB control as no TB-affected household experiencing catastrophic expenditure—may remain aspirational. To enhance effective access to care for all, innovative opportunities in patient-centered and collaborative practices must be taken.”
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Stevens H, Van Overwalle G, Van Looy B, Huys I.
IP policies in early-phase research in public-private partnerships: an overview and assessment of current practices.
Nat Biotechnol. 2016, 34(5);504-10.
An Intellectual Property (IP) policy analysis reveals the use of a variety of IP frameworks within early-phase biomedical Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs). Dependent on the nature of the research objectives, enacted IP frameworks or „knowledge sharing strategies‟ differ, ranging from „partnership oriented‟ models towards „open‟ models.
Goldman M.
Education in Medicine: Moving the boundaries to foster interdisciplinarity.
Front Med. 2016 Apr(3). Epub. 2016 Apr 8.
http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fmed.2016.00015/full
“Future advances [in precision medicine] will depend on innovative educational programs that will provide the next generation of healthcare professionals with sound and robust bases for interdisciplinary patient-focused approaches and that will develop their mindset for collaboration.”
Murray F., Aghion P., Dewatripont M., Kolev J., Stern S.
Of Mice and Academics: Examining the Effect of Openness on Innovation
American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, February 2016, 8(1): 212–252
The paper argues that openness, by lowering costs to access existing research, can enhance both early and late stage innovation through greater exploration of novel research directions.
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Lambert PH, Goldman M.
Vaccination and Autoimmune Diseases.
The Vaccine Book.2016;Ch.9:161-75. Elsevier, ISBN: 978-0-12-802174-3.
The association of vaccination and the potential risk of autoimmune adverse effects deserves particular attention. The book chapter reviews the reality of this concern for infection-associated autoimmune manifestations and guidelines are defined for clinicians to face the challenge of vaccinating patients with autoimmune diseases.
Stevens H, Van Overwalle G, Van Looy B, Huys I.
Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) Case Study Analysis Reveals the True Added Value of Early-Phase Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs).
Biotechnology Law Report 2015, 34(4), 153-165 doi:10.1089/blr.2015.29008.hs
The Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) is a Joint Technology Initiative (JTI) between the European Union, represented by the European Commission (EC), and the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA). IMI is currently the world’s largest PPP in the biomedical sciences. Authors set up a case study analysis to investigate the outputs on the short term and the outcomes on the long term of 6 IMI consortia reaching the project end. The specific case studies define the (missed) business opportunities and reveal the added value for science and society.
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Lim MD, Brumfield MA, Goldman M.
Philanthropies as partners for drug development in public–private partnerships.
Journal of Medicines Development Sciences, 2015,1(1);1-4.
http://jmds.whioce.com/index.php/journal-of-medicines-development/article/view/01001/PDF_1
In addition to providing financial support and expertise, philanthropic foundations are in a unique position to coordinate the patient and research communities to enable and accelerate specific medicines development projects.
Gunn M, Lim MD, Cross D, Goldman M.
Benchmarking the scientific output of the Innovative Medicines Initiative.
Nat Biotechnol. 2015 Aug;33(8):811-2.
A holistic framework, going beyond measuring bibliometric data, has been proposed to compare and improve the performance of ongoing consortia and establish new ‘fit-for-purpose’ public-private partnerships. The whole framework of measurements takes into consideration evaluation criteria applicable to both the corporate and public worlds.
Stevens H, Van Overwalle G, Van Looy B, Huys I.
Perspectives and opportunities for precompetitive public-private partnerships.
Biotechnology Law Report 2013, 32(3), 131-139
A holistic framework, going beyond measuring bibliometric data, has been proposed to compare and improve the performance of ongoing consortia and establish new ‘fit-for-purpose’ public-private partnerships. The whole framework of measurements takes into consideration evaluation criteria applicable to both the corporate and public worlds.
Link to the publication