[Choi Dae-yeol's Taeduk] Giving a disease and then a cure... The unknown truth

[Reporter’s Reading] 10 Medicines That Saved Humanity
From Birth Secrets to Shadows

Photo by Getty Images Bank

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), which has been around for less than a year, has infected more than 170,000 people daily and over 120 people per minute by rough estimates. Considering the alarming scale of its spread in the Northern Hemisphere compared to last spring, it is clear that the number of confirmed cases will continue to rise.

It is natural that global pharmaceutical companies have stepped forward to develop COVID-19 treatments or vaccines. However, it is not a simple matter. It is desirable to consolidate the medical knowledge humanity has accumulated so far. But to achieve tangible results like treatments or vaccines, it must above all be profitable.

In the pharmaceutical industry, infectious diseases are a representative field that does not generate profit. Most viruses, like COVID-19, frequently change their form, making them difficult to target. Moreover, if an effective drug is developed, it dramatically reduces patients in a short time, leading to a world where the drug is no longer needed. It is natural for each country responsible for epidemic prevention and eradication to develop treatments and vaccines out of public duty. However, it is a rare sight to see large global pharmaceutical companies, which cannot ignore profit-seeking, all rushing to join the effort.

'Ten Drugs,' written by Thomas Hager, a full-time author specializing in science books in the United States, touches on the history of medicine, the world, and even social structures. As the title suggests, 'Ten Drugs' covers the origins of ten drugs, the evolution of humanity thanks to these drugs, and the shadows cast by the massive pharmaceutical industry. This is an intriguing topic. Perhaps because the author transitioned from researcher to full-time writer, the book is relatively easy to read for a medical science book.

Smallpox, officially declared eradicated in the late 20th century, led to humanity's first vaccine. The symptoms of smallpox were horrific. Moreover, due to its high fatality rate, it was considered the most terrifying infectious disease in human history. The last naturally infected patient was reported in Somalia in 1977. The following year, after an infected person died at a research institute in the UK, no further cases have occurred.

When thinking of smallpox, Edward Jenner (1749?1823) and his cowpox method usually come to mind. However, the author focuses on Mary Pierpont (1689?1762), who studied and implemented smallpox prevention decades earlier. She had lived in what is now Turkey with her husband. She personally observed that locals did not contract smallpox after a certain traditional ritual. The locals would remove scabs or pus from mild smallpox patients' wounds and create wounds on healthy individuals. Then, applying the scabs or pus to the healthy person's wounds would cause a slight fever for a few days, but they would recover quickly.

This preventive method, later called variolation, is the precursor to vaccines, a great product of science. At the time, it was believed that diseases were caused by imbalances in bodily fluids like blood or mucus. After returning to London, England, Pierpont applied variolation to her own daughter when smallpox was epidemic. Soon after, she spread the practice to the royal family through her connections. Of course, there was considerable opposition. But by the late 1700s, variolation was accepted throughout England.

Pierpont also conducted clinical trials, which are fundamental to new drug development. However, her achievement of introducing and popularizing this inoculation method was not properly recognized even after her death. This was because the method evolved into a better inoculation using cowpox virus from cow's milk, known as vaccination. This advancement was thanks to experiments by a tenant farmer and a doctor living in a region of England, not Jenner, who is called the father of immunology. The author points out, quoting a scientist, that "in science, fame goes not to the person who first comes up with an idea, but to the person who convinces the world."

On the 9th (local time), American pharmaceutical company Pfizer announced that the Phase 3 clinical trial of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine, developed in collaboration with German company BioNTech, showed an efficacy rate exceeding 90%. The photo shows the Pfizer logo and the COVID-19 vaccine.

The author also critiques the widespread use of statins. In the past, he was advised to take statins by someone who seemed to be a doctor at a local hospital. He investigated how statins were developed and the historical background that led to their successful adoption mainly in advanced countries like the United States.

Statins are known to lower cholesterol levels and reduce the risk of heart disease. However, after months of careful consideration, the author concluded that he would not take them. Statins may be necessary for patients with high cholesterol, but for most people, their effectiveness is hard to confirm, and side effects may be greater.

Recently published in Korea, 'Ten Drugs' by Thomas Haeger

According to the author, the widespread prescription of statins is due to medical professionals and pharmaceutical companies significantly lowering disease criteria. This, of course, is to greatly increase the number of potential patients. Furthermore, as imperfect drugs appear as if they are the solution, genuine efforts to maintain health?such as exercise, quitting smoking and drinking, and balanced diets?are not properly valued. The author does not only point out the dark side of drugs. For example, contraceptives brought about a sexual revolution and expanded women's opportunities. Monoclonal antibodies have shifted cancer from an incurable to a treatable condition.

It is impossible to predict what drugs will emerge in the future and how they will improve human health. However, the author's conviction about the development process is clear: "For new drug development to be properly achieved, it must be freed from the grasp of profit-seeking corporations. Another model based on public funds pursuing the public good must be sought." This is what should be applied to the COVID-19 treatments and vaccines we all hope for.