Canada leading in healthcare research but challenges remain for bringing treatments to patients: Dr. Tom Hudson
When it comes to leading scientific discovery, whether it’s in a lab or on a discussion panel to rally policymakers and investors, Dr. Tom Hudson is a visionary.
He has an MD from the University of Montreal (along with his twin sister who works in public health) and decades of expertise that includes a fellowship at MIT where he worked on the Human Genome Project to build a physical map of the human genome. His work with a team of biologists, engineers and mathematicians pioneered robotics and data technology tools for health research.
His optimism about the future of healthcare in Canada is tempered by a deep understanding of the challenges and practicalities, however he still believes meaningful advances in research and patient access to new and innovative therapies have been made.
“The more we understand science and we understand which patient is going to respond to a drug, the better clinical programs we can have and the better ability to show the benefits in that patient population for precision medicine,” says Hudson, a Canadian scientist and authority on human genetics and disease.
“We’re going to see more tailored therapies for patients, not just in oncology, but in immunology and neuroscience. And these will be gamechangers, obviously for Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease and the older population. There’s a huge unmet need that’s going to continue to be important for society,” he adds. “I see a lot of hope to actually penetrate some disease areas where progress has been slow.”
That is hopeful. In Canada, the number of people aged 85 and older has doubled since 2001, reaching 861,000 in 2021.
According to population projections
, this number could triple by 2046. Although younger-onset neurodegenerative disease is rising, aging is a risk factor. One in four seniors age 85-plus have been diagnosed with dementia, for example, and the prevalence more than doubles every five years for people 65 and older, notes the
Canadian Institute for Health Information
. The added pressures on healthcare services and caregivers to help aging Canadians is one growing concern that comes with changing demographics.
link