Translational medicine
Translational medicine is a branch of medical science focused on transforming scientific discoveries into practical applications for patient care, following a "bench-to-bedside" approach. This process involves using clinical observations made by physicians to guide laboratory research aimed at improving treatment methods and health outcomes. It also incorporates findings from one area of medical research into another, such as applying animal study results to human treatments. The concept began to take shape in 1945, distinguishing between basic research for knowledge and applied research aimed at practical medical applications. By the 1990s, the term "translational medicine" emerged, emphasizing patient-centered studies to prevent and treat diseases. The 21st century has seen a shift towards utilizing established scientific principles to address health challenges directly, prioritizing practical interventions over theoretical inquiries. This focus is particularly important for securing research funding, as grant applications increasingly demand evidence of potential health benefits and applications. Translational medicine plays a crucial role in various medical fields, striving to enhance patient care through innovation and targeted research.
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Translational medicine
Translational medicine is a form of medical science that emphasizes a bench-to-bedside approach to finding new ways to prevent and treat diseases. Bench-to-bedside is a bi-directional approach to medical research; it means that medical researchers can take observations made by physicians while they are treating patients, work in the laboratory to find ways to address these observations, and provide new treatments or technology for physicians to use while tending to their patients. It can also mean taking information learned in one area of medical research and applying it to another; for instance, taking the results of a study on animals and using that to develop a new treatment for humans. Translational medicine emphasizes finding practical ways to improve patient health. It is increasingly a necessary component of any request for medical research grant funding.
Background
While researchers and scientists have long applied the principles of translational medicine to their work, the development of translational medicine as a specific medical research discipline can be traced to 1945. At that time, Vannevar Bush, the director of the Office of Scientific Research and Development in Washington, D.C., differentiated between basic research done for the sake of gaining knowledge and research done for a practical application. He noted that basic research is important because it provides an understanding of the principles that are needed to find practical ways to apply medical science.
Over the next several decades, many advancements were made in scientific knowledge and understanding, especially in medical science. During the 1990s, researchers began to emphasis patient-focused studies. They increasingly sought to understand how people got sick and what things could be done to prevent and treat illnesses. They looked to develop new techniques and technologies to prevent and treat sicknesses, and to identify the best ways to test what they found.
The earliest use of the term translational medicine came about during this time. In its earliest application, it applied to transferring or translating a technique or technology for treating one disease to another; for example, using a type of chemotherapy that was developed for one type of cancer on another. It was also used to refer to taking the techniques used in one type of research and using them in another; for instance, applying the tools and techniques used to study germs to study human genes.
By the first decade of the twenty-first century, researchers were using the term in reference to other ways of moving from one area of medical research to another. The focus remained on finding practical ways to improve the health of humans as a whole through finding new and better ways to treat and prevent disease. Translational medicine increasingly began to be a bi-directional form of study in which the clinical observations of physicians were investigated to see if anything about them could be used to improve health.
Overview
By the twenty-first century, a great deal of the basic science needed to understand the functions of the human body and its systems was understood. This meant fewer resources needed to be put into understanding how the body worked and more could be placed into finding practical ways to apply that knowledge.
Medical research increasingly began to focus on practical applications for the improvement of health. For example, if a number of physicians noted that their patients who had chronic stomach discomfort reported a reduction in symptoms after they ate certain foods, physicians would share that information with researchers. Those researchers would start with what is already known about the foods and the digestive system; they would then investigate those foods and how they affected the digestive tract to see if they could find a connection. If a connection was found, they would conduct further studies to find a way to capitalize on that connection; perhaps some aspect of the food could be converted to a medication or supplement that would enhance its effects and provide relief to more people. Or, researchers might note that mice given a certain combination of substances did not get sick when exposed to a virus, and as a result the scientists might investigate, develop, and test ways to apply that information to prevent humans from getting sick with a similar virus.
This was different than the approach that was previously taken to much research in medical science. In the past, most research focused on testing various hypotheses without any clear plan for what to do with the outcome of that research. For example, a study to determine how unhealthy it is to be overweight would not fit the definition of translational science or medicine because it is already a generally accepted fact. Knowing the degree to which it is unhealthy is not likely to either reduce the rate of obesity or prevent more people from becoming overweight. However, a study that followed up on an observation that a certain group of people developed fewer instances of comorbid conditions such as heart disease or diabetes despite being overweight might find a way to help prevent these same comorbid conditions in other overweight people; this qualifies as translational medicine.
While some research continues to be done to enhance overall knowledge, the world of medical science is increasingly focused on finding practical applications that will enhance human health in some way. This is especially becoming a factor in the competitive world of gaining grant funding for medical research. Researchers need to show that what they hope to learn from their study will in some way have a direct, practical application that will help patients. Companies involved in medical science—particularly those in the fields of pharmacology, medical technology, genomics, infectious diseases, oncology, and other specialties—frequently look to employ people with advanced degrees in science and an interest in finding new ways to improve health, lowering the costs of providing quality health care, and developing innovative ways to treat emerging health concerns.
Bibliography
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