Need to Accelerate Your Pharma R&D? Put It in Fast Forward

Bringing drugs to market is a long and costly process. Universities and smaller pharmaceutical companies frequently seek to license their discoveries to larger pharmaceutical companies as a route to market. But oftentimes, more development is needed before that is a viable option. These researchers and business development personnel need to find creative means to move their drug candidates further along the development pipeline. I wanted to share one example of a catalyst to move drugs to the clinic more quickly.

Fast Forward was founded in 2007 as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the National Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Society. Fast Forward connects people, ideas and vital resources to accelerate the development of new treatments for people with MS. They bridge the gap between groundbreaking research knowledge and the commercial resources necessary to move those discoveries into the drug development process.

Sound like it might help you? Check out Fast Forward’s Web page. Fast Forward has issued its 2010 Request for Proposals (RFP) to fund novel translational, preclinical, or clinical development programs to prevent, treat, or reverse central nervous system damage in MS. If you are interested in learning more, there is an informational teleconference on Friday, April 23, at noon Eastern.

Like Fast Forward, there are other organizations, such as the Michael J. Fox Foundation, that are also pushing the envelope in trying to impact patients faster. These efforts have made, and will continue to make, a difference, opening up a new, effective means for fostering drug development.

–By Nannette Stangle-Castor, Ph.D.