Eric G. Campbell, Ph.D.

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Eric G. Campbell, Ph.D.
Commercialization in Academe Lessons from the
Life Sciences

• Assistant Professor
• Harvard Medical School
• Massachusetts General Hospital

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The Plan

• Thesis
• Frequency of Relationships
• Benefits of Relationships
• Risks of Relationships
• Implications for Policy and Management

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Thesis

• Academic industry relationships and
  commercialization are fundamental to the modern
  life science economy. They cannot and should not
  be prohibited. But their benefits should not be
  exaggerated, nor their risks minimized or
  ignored. These relationships must be disclosed,
  monitored and managed in a manner that protects
  the investments and the integrity of involved
  individuals, institutions and science in general.
  Failure to do so could result in loss of public
  confidence and support for the research
  enterprisea priceless resource whose integrity
  and independence are critical to the future of
  the scientific endeavor.

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Data Sources

• Surveys
• 1985 -- top 50 universities (biotechnology
  faculty)
• 1995 -- US life science companies
• 1995 -- top 50 universities (faculty)
• 1996 -- all medical schools (faculty)
• 2000 -- all medical school (geneticists and life
  scientists)
• 2000 -- all medical schools (faculty)
• 2003 -- case studies at 4 universities
• Other sources from general literature

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Academic industry relationships and
commercialization are fundamental to the modern
life science economy Faculty AIRs
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Institutional AIRs

• Departments funded by companies
• MGH-Hoechst created genetics department
• Harvard Medical School and Dupont
• Washington University and Monsanto
• Yale and Bristol Meyers
• Endowed chairs
• Donated Equipment (eg. MRIs, CTs, etc)
• University owned equity

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Company Participation
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But their benefits should not be exaggerated, nor
their risks minimized or ignored

• Academic Benefits
• Research Funding1996 industry provided 12 of
  all research academic Life Science research
  funding

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Faculty Benefits
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Increased Faculty Academic Productivity
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Increased Faculty Commercial Productivity
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Industry Benefits
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Risks of these AIRs

• AIRs may . burden university administration and
  divert the faculty. Graduate students may be
  drawn into projects in ways that sacrifice their
  education for commercial gain. Research
  performed with an eye towards profit may lure
  investigators into conflicts of interest or cause
  them to practice forms of secrecy that hamper
  scientific progress. Ultimately, corporate ties
  may undermine the universitys reputation for
  objectivity.--Derek Bok, President Harvard
  University

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Challenges

• Reduced Faculty Productivity
• Secrecy/Data Withholding
• Alter the Outcomes of Research

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Reduced Academic Productivity
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Industry Secrecy Students

• 57 of companies with AIRs reported that
  confidential, proprietary information sometimes
  or often emerges from their sponsorship of
  graduate students.
• 80 of companies with AIRs require students and
  fellows to keep research information confidential.

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Industry Secrecy Faculty

• 82 of companies require academic researchers to
  keep information confidential to allow for
  filing of a patent application.
• 58 typically require academics to keep
  information confidential for more than six
  months.

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Faculty Secrecy
Blumenthal et al., 1996
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These relationships must be disclosed, monitored
and managed in a manner that protects the
investments and the integrity of involved
individuals, institutions and science in general.

• Disclosure-Minimal acceptable response (cant
  manage what you dont know about)
• Review-Develop common set of standards for what
  is acceptable and what is not
• Manage- Develop mechanisms for appropriate
  management of problematic relationships
• Ban-Some relationships might be banned
• IgnoreEg. Universities pay virtually no
  attention to consulting

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Actors in the Debate

• Individual Scientists
• Universities
• Professional Associations
• Professional Journals
• Government Agencies

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Failure to manage these relationships

• Increased federal regulations
• Increased secrecy in science
• Loss of public belief in the integrity of the
  academic research enterprise
• Less willingness of patients to participate in
  clinical research

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Disclosure

• Funding from
• The National Institutes of Health
• The Commonwealth Fund
• The Greenwall Foundation Bioethics Program