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Latest developments in global awareness of antimicrobial resistance
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Infectious Disease News Editorial Board member, and president of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, James M. Hughes, MD,explores the effect of education in changing the odds of beating ‘super bugs.’
What’s the status of the 10 x ‘20 Infectious Diseases Society of America initiative?
Support is increasing for the goal of developing 10 new systemic antibiotics by 2020. More than 30 medical associations and professional organizations have endorsed our 10 x ’20 campaign — the American Medical Association, the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America, and the American Veterinary Medical Association, among them. It’s also gaining momentum, but there is hard work ahead.
The problem with antimicrobial resistance is that it’s very complex and requires a multifaceted strategy. There is more to this than just developing new drugs. There are also surveillance and infection control issues, legislation and policy issues, promoting good hand hygiene, issues to do with development of rapid diagnostic tests and the use of vaccines, and so on. We have several senior leaders and staff involved in this. It’s a huge undertaking.
It’s also worth mentioning that the IDSA is launching a new website very soon. It will be tailored to the individual interests of our members and of all visitors. For example, if you’re interested in drug research, you can tailor it to just provide information about that issue.
Is the message about the importance of developing new treatments for ‘super bugs’ gaining traction?
Yes, I think so. For the first time, WHO identified antimicrobial resistance as the theme for its annual World Health Day. That’s important because WHO’s annual report focuses on the theme, so we can anticipate that this year’s report will also focus on antimicrobial resistance, and that will mean the lay media will pick it up as they did the messages WHO released on April 7. IDSA also released a policy paper that day, “Combating Antimicrobial Resistance: Policy Recommendations to Save Lives” with specific recommendations for action (cid.oxfordjournals.org/content/52/suppl_5).
This is both a national and global problem needing the attention of policymakers, and we must collectively address it with the help of the policymakers and drug companies.
What kind of support for this campaign is there from public officials?
Officials and legislators have been talking on Capitol Hill about it. There are now three important pieces of pending legislation important for people to be aware of: the Strategies to Address Antimicrobial Resistance (STAAR) Act; the Generating Antibiotic Incentives Now (GAIN) Act; and the Preservation of Antibiotics for Medical Treatment Act (PAMTA). We’re hopeful they will move forward.
There are a number of reasons why we’ve received so much support. For one thing, there are a number of patients who’ve been directly affected by this crisis. They’ve made their case on Capitol Hill. Last summer, there were the reports on New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase-1 (NDM-1), illustrating the global nature of these problems.
The Obama administration is well aware of the severity of the problem. It’s part of the medical countermeasures innovations involving the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA). Of course, there are going to be some resource requirements, so the funding needs to be adequate for there to be progress. That organization is well-suited to take this on.
Is the pharmaceutical industry in support of your initiative?
Some pharma companies have left the field of antibiotic and antimicrobial development because the financial incentives aren’t what they might be for a drug that treats high blood pressure or diabetes, conditions for which patients might take a drug for the rest of their lives, as opposed to antibiotics that they only take for several days. So that’s why there is a lot of talk about how the industry can be incentivized.
The FDA has been widely criticized for what many consider its byzantine approval processes. How does this impact the 10 x ‘20 initiative?
We’re in frequent communication with our colleagues at FDA about this issue. They need to give drug companies and the research community involved in clinical trials of drugs better guidance in order for a drug to be licensed. The important thing is we’ve got an open dialogue with them, and they recognize the serious nature of the drug-resistance issue.
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