This book is open access under a CC-BY license. The importance of the pharmaceutical industry in Sub-Saharan Africa, its claim to policy priority, is rooted in the vast unmet health needs of the sub-continent. Making Medicines in Africa is a collective endeavour, by a group of contributors with a strong African and more broadly Southern presence, to find ways to link technological development, investment and industrial growth in pharmaceuticals to improve access to essential good quality medicines, as part of moving towards universal access to competent health care in Africa. The authors aim to shift the emphasis in international debate and initiatives towards sustained Africa-based and African-led initiatives to tackle this huge challenge. Without the technological, industrial, intellectual, organisational and research-related capabilities associated with competent pharmaceutical production, and without policies that pull the industrial sectors towards serving local health needs, the African sub-continent cannot generate the resources to tackle its populations' needs and demands. Research for this book has been selected as one of the 20 best examples of the impact of UK research on development. See http://www.ukcds.org.uk/the-global-impact-of-uk-research for further details.

Drug discovery originating in Africa has the potential to provide significantly improved treatment of endemic diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS. This book critically reviews the current status of drug discovery research and development in Africa, for diseases that are a major threat to the health of people living in Africa. Compiled by leading African and international experts, this book presents the science and strategies of modern drug discovery. It explores how the use of natural products and traditional medicines can benefit from conventional drug discovery approaches, and proposes solutions to current technological, infrastructural, human resources, and economic challenges, which are presented when attempting to engage in full-scale drug discovery. Topics addressed are varied; from African medicinal plants to marine bioprospecting, pharmacogenetics and the use of nanotechnology. This book brings together for the first time a collection of strategies and techniques that need to be considered when developing drugs in an African setting. It is an unprecedented and truly international effort, highlighting the remarkable effort made so far in the area of drug discovery research by African scientists, and scientists from other parts of the world working on African health problems.

Thanks to remarkable advances in modern health care attributable to science, engineering, and medicine, it is now possible to cure or manage illnesses that were long deemed untreatable. At the same time, however, the United States is facing the vexing challenge of a seemingly uncontrolled rise in the cost of health care. Total medical expenditures are rapidly approaching 20 percent of the gross domestic product and are crowding out other priorities of national importance. The use of increasingly expensive prescription drugs is a significant part of this problem, making the cost of biopharmaceuticals a serious national concern with broad political implications. Especially with the highly visible and very large price increases for prescription drugs that have occurred in recent years, finding a way to make prescription medicinesâ€"and health care at largeâ€"more affordable for everyone has become a socioeconomic imperative. Affordability is a complex function of factors, including not just the prices of the drugs themselves, but also the details of an individual's insurance coverage and the number of medical conditions that an individual or family confronts. Therefore, any solution to the affordability issue will require considering all of these factors together. The current high and increasing costs of prescription drugsâ€"coupled with the broader trends in overall health care costsâ€"is unsustainable to society as a whole. Making Medicines Affordable examines patient access to affordable and effective therapies, with emphasis on drug pricing, inflation in the cost of drugs, and insurance design. This report explores structural and policy factors influencing drug pricing, drug access programs, the emerging role of comparative effectiveness assessments in payment policies, changing finances of medical practice with regard to drug costs and reimbursement, and measures to prevent drug shortages and foster continued innovation in drug development. It makes recommendations for policy actions that could address drug price trends, improve patient access to affordable and effective treatments, and encourage innovations that address significant needs in health care.

Toxicological Survey of African Medicinal Plants provides a detailed overview of toxicological studies relating to traditionally used medicinal plants in Africa, with special emphasis on the methodologies and tools used for data collection and interpretation. The book considers the physical parameters of these plants and their effect upon various areas of the body and human health, including chapters dedicated to genotoxicity, hepatotoxicity, nephrotoxicity, cardiotoxicity, neurotoxicity, and specific organs and systems.Following this discussion of the effects of medicinal plants is a critical review of the guidelines and methods in use for toxicological research as well as the state of toxicology studies in Africa. With up-to-date research provided by a team of experts, Toxicological Survey of African Medicinal Plants is an invaluable resource for researchers and students involved in pharmacology, toxicology, phytochemistry, medicine, pharmacognosy, and pharmaceutical biology. - Offers a critical review of the methods used in toxicological survey of medicinal plants - Provides up-to-date toxicological data on African medicinal plants and families - Serves as a resource tool for students and scientists in the various areas of toxicology

This book is open access under a CC-BY license. This book is about medicines production in sub-Saharan Africa, an enquiry driven by the vast unmet health needs of the sub-continent. It is a collective endeavour by a group of editors and authors with a strong African and more broadly Southern presence to find ways forward that link technological development, investment and industrial growth in pharmaceuticals to improve access to essential good quality medicines, as part of moving towards universal access to competent health care. We aim to shift the emphasis in international debate to give much more attention to the scope for sustained Africa-based and African-led initiatives to tackle this huge challenge. Without the technological, industrial, intellectual, organisational and research-related capabilities associated with competent pharmaceutical production, and without policies that pull the industrial sectors towards serving local health needs, the African sub-continent cannot generate the resources to tackle the needs and demands of its population.

In Biomedical Hegemony and Democracy in South Africa Ngambouk Vitalis Pemunta and Tabi Chama-James Tabenyang unpack the contentious South African government’s post-apartheid policy framework of the ‘‘return to tradition policy’’. The conjuncture between deep sociopolitical crises, witchcraft, the ravaging HIV/AIDS pandemic and the government’s initial reluctance to adopt antiretroviral therapy turned away desperate HIV/AIDS patients to traditional healers. Drawing on historical sources, policy documents and ethnographic interviews, Pemunta and Tabenyang convincingly demonstrate that despite biomedical hegemony, patients and members of their therapy-seeking group often shuttle between modern and traditional medicine, thereby making both systems of healthcare complementary rather than alternatives. They draw the attention of policy-makers to the need to be aware of ‘‘subaltern health narratives’’ in designing health policy.

Equitable Access to High-Cost Pharmaceuticals seeks to aid the development and implementation of equitable public health policies by pharmaco-economics professionals, health economists, and policymakers. With detailed country-by country analysis of policy and regulation, the Work compares and contrasts national healthcare systems to support researchers and practitioners identify optimal healthcare policy solutions. The Work incorporates chapters on global regulatory changes, health technology assessment guidelines, and competitive effectiveness research recommendations from international bodies such as the OECD or the EU. Novel policies such as horizon scanning, managed-entry agreement and post-launch monitoring are considered in detail. The Work also thoroughly reviews novel pharmaceuticals with particular research interest, including cancer drugs, orphan medicines, Hep C, and personalized medicines. - Evaluates impact and efficacy of current access policies and pricing regulation of high-cost drugs - Incorporates existing guidelines and recommendations by international organizations - Compares and contrasts how different countries fund and police high-cost drug access - Explores novel and emergent policies, including managed entry agreement, analysis of real world data and differential pricing - Reviews novel pharmaceuticals of current research interest