Drug repurposing offers a promising route to making existing medicines available to patients more quickly and affordably. In the latest episode of the Innovation and Affordability podcast series, we take a closer look at the opportunities, challenges, and solutions offered by this approach.

In the latest episode of the FAST podcast, three experts explore how drug repurposing can be strengthened in the Netherlands. From an investor’s perspective, Hester Tak, senior investment manager at Oost NL, explains that repurposing is interesting because it makes more efficient use of resources that are already safe, but that there is a cultural difference with private investors who often seek the high returns of new molecules. Théresa Dao, senior policy officer at the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport, explains how legislation and regulations can currently slow down development and emphasizes the importance of smart routes to registration: “New European legislation will soon make it possible for academic parties to register a new indication themselves, which would be a breakthrough for repurposing.” Saco de Visser, scientific director of FAST, emphasizes that rediscovering existing drugs is a promising route: “Rediscovering existing drugs is a potentially cheaper field of activity. We already know a lot about the safety of these drugs, which means the risks are lower than with new molecules. But the current system is geared towards novelty, which often means there is no financial incentive. We need more examples and, above all, we need to do and learn. Only then can repurposing gain a permanent place in the development system.”

We also speak with the winners of the Drug Repurposing Venture Challenge, the SAVE team:

• Maroeska te Loo, Pediatric Hematologist-Oncologist and Clinical Pharmacologist at Radboudumc.
• Veroniek Harbers, Physician-Researcher at HECOVAN and Dermatology Radboudumc.

Drug repurposing: faster and more affordable
Drug repurposing, the reuse of existing drugs for new indications, can make an important contribution to healthcare. It offers patients faster access to treatments and can reduce costs for society. At the same time, it is a challenge to make this attractive to investors and to implement it in a socially responsible manner. The social value of drug repurposing is great, but the system is not yet ready for it.

Winners of the Drug Repurposing Venture Challenge
The SAVE team talks about their journey in the Drug Repurposing Venture Challenge, the insights they have gained, and their next steps toward investors. Maroeska te Loo explains: “We saw patients who were able to walk again after years. But the drug also has side effects. With the Venture Challenge, we want to work on a new formulation with fewer side effects and broader registration. This will make this therapy accessible to all patients who need it.”

Listen to this inspiring episode now (in Dutch) and discover the opportunities that drug repurposing offers.