Drug Development Process
Communicating the drug development process to the general public and policymakers can be challenging due to the scientific complexity and extensive regulatory requirements involved in bringing a new medicine to market.
To help address this challenge, the ASPET Drug Research Policy Subcommittee created an infographic that distills the full pipeline into an accessible and concise format. The infographic highlights key details of each stage of the process, from drug discovery and preclinical research through clinical trials and regulatory review, while summarizing the major milestones and challenges. Additionally, it provides important context on the scale of drug development, illustrating that bringing a single medication to market typically requires 8–16 years and an investment ranging from approximately $70 million to $2 billion.
We hope this infographic will be widely shared as an educational resource that improves understanding of the drug development process. In particular, it can serve as a valuable resource for science policy advocacy, as it demonstrates the substantial amount of resources, financial investment, and time required to deliver safe and effective treatments to the public. By highlighting these realities, the infographic can help inform discussions regarding the importance of sustained investment in pharmacological research funding.
