So-called me-too drugs are iterations of existing medications that are similar in structure with only minor differences. Such medications typically result from pharmaceutical companies tweaking existing drugs to develop newer and usually more effective therapies. Alhough this mode of research sounds like a great idea, me-too drugs commonly get a bad rap for being non-innovative, especially from critics like Marcia Angell of the Harvard School of Public Health.
But according to the latest op-ed in Medical Progress Today by ACSH s Dr. Josh Bloom, such naysayers are displaying their ignorance about pharmaceutical matters. In fact, writes Dr. Bloom, the second or third drug in a new class of therapies is often superior to the original. This can result in enormous medical advantages, despite what vocal critics wrongly maintain.
As a case in point, Dr. Bloom points out that the latest hepatitis C treatments, which have proved to be particularly beneficial, are the result of me-too drug research. Indeed, even HAART (highly active antiretroviral therapy) drugs, which revolutionized the treatment of HIV, relied on the me-too drug discovery model.
To find out more about the types of medical and pharmaceutical innovations that have emerged as a result of me-too drugs, read Dr. Bloom s op-ed in full here.
