Insight

William Pao: The trajectory from laboratory to your neighborhood pharmacy rarely runs in a straight line

Photo from William Pao/LinkedIn

Sep 10, 2024, 02:20

William Pao: The trajectory from laboratory to your neighborhood pharmacy rarely runs in a straight line

Erika Hamilton shared a post by William Pao, on LinkedIn, adding:

“So excited to see this project of yours come to fruition William Pao. Will be first in line to get the full copy. Congrats!”

Quoting William Pao’s post:

“Ever wonder what it takes to create a new medicine?

The trajectory from laboratory to your neighborhood pharmacy rarely runs in a straight line. Eureka moments come few and far between. Drug discoveries demand leaps of imagination and lateral thinking, the accumulation of the knowledge and expertise of many, and – nearly always – a hefty dollop of luck.

To develop a new drug, scientists must decode nature – the biological secrets of life that have evolved over millions of years. They must identify and characterize a disease, understand scientifically why it occurs, and then find a way to alter its course by employing a particular molecule that will impact the disease without incurring serious side effects.

In my new book, BREAKTHROUGH, come get a privileged look at the stories of innovation behind the development of eight revolutionary medicines that improve – and very often save – our lives. In BREAKTHROUGH, I celebrate the tireless work of scientists, drug hunters, physicians and others working hard to discover better treatments. Behind each of these medicines – whether a potentially life-saving new treatment for cancer, or something as commonplace as paracetamol – there stands a cast of characters and a wealth of stories.

BREAKTHROUGH is available for pre-order (on Amazon UK) in the run up to publication on 3 October.

The US edition will be published on 14th January 2025.”

William Pao

Source: Erika Hamilton/LinkedIn and William Pao/LinkedIn

Erika Hamilton is a medical oncologist and the Director of Breast Cancer Program at Sarah Cannon Research Institute (USA). Dr. Hamilton is a past chair of ASCO’s Scientific Breast Committee a ’21-’22, participant of the ASCO Leadership Development Program, Associate Editor for Clinical Breast Cancer, co-chair for Great Debates and Updates in Women’s Oncology Conference and a board member of the Susan G. Komen Foundation of Central Tennessee.

William Pao is an Adjunct Professor of Pharmacology and Medicine at Joan & Sanford I. Weill Medical College of Cornell University. He is the Chief Executive Officer of Revelio Therapeutics and serves as an Independent Member of the Board of Directors at Obsidian Therapeutics and Alentis Therapeutics. He is also a member of the Board of Directors for the American Association for Cancer Research.