Systems biology and the new demands
A lack of system-level understanding of
cellular dynamics has prevented any substantial increase in the number of new
drugs available to the public and any increase in drug efficacy or eradication
of any specific disease. In contrast, pharmaceutical companies are currently
lacking criteria for selecting the most valuable targets, research and
development (R&D) expenses skyrocket, and new drugs rarely hit the market
and often fail in clinical trials, while physicians face an increasing wealth
of information that needs to be interpreted intelligently and holistically (Hood
2004; Kriete and Eils, 2006).
Evolution of the Modern Healthcare System
Before 1900, medicine had little
to offer the average citizen, since its resources consisted mainly of
the physician, his education, and
his “little black bag.” In general, physicians seemed to be in short
supply, but the shortage had rather different causes than the current
crisis in the availability of healthcare professionals. Although the costs of
obtaining medical training were relatively low, the demand for doctors’
services also was very small, since many of the services provided by the
physician also could be obtained from experienced amateurs in the community.
The home was typically the site for treatment and recuperation, and relatives
and neighbors constituted an able and willing nursing staff. Babies were delivered
by midwives, and those illnesses not cured by home remedies were left to run
their natural, albeit frequently fatal, course. The contrast with contemporary
healthcare practices, in which specialized physicians and nurses located within
the hospital provide critical diagnostic and treatment services, is dramatic (Bronzino,
2006).
References cited:
Joseph D. Bronzino, Biomedical
Engineering Fundamentals, The Biomedical Engineering Handbook, Third Edition, Taylor&Francis,
2006.
Leroy Hood, James R. Heath,
Michael E. Phelps, Biaoyang Lin, Systems Biology and New Technologies Enable Predictive
and Preventative Medicine, Science Viewpoint,
October, Vol. 306, 2004.
Andres Kriete, Roland
Eils, Computational Systems Biology, Elsevier Academic Press, 2006.
