Drug Quote by Mary Roach
““And in the case of fecal transplants, there’s no drug or medical device involved, and thus no pharmaceutical company or device maker with diverticula deep enough to fund the multiple rounds of controlled clinical trials. If anything, drug companies might be inclined to fight the procedure’s approval. Pharmaceutical companies make money by treating diseases, not by curing them. “There’s billions of dollars at stake,” says Khoruts. “I told Katerina, if this works, don’t be surprised to find me at the bottom of the river.””
About This Quote
Source Interview: “Guts: The Inside Story of Our Body’s Most Underrated Organ”, 2013
The quote highlights how fecal transplants face financial obstacles because they bypass traditional drug or device markets, reducing profit incentives for big pharma.
In simple terms: Fecal transplants lack a profit model for pharma, hindering trials.
Key Takeaway
Advocate for alternative funding models.
Themes
medicine
ethics
industry
innovation
research
Mood
critical
concerned
Type
analytical
informative
When to use this quote
- hospital adoption
- patient advocacy
- policy reform
- grant applications
Key Concepts
pharmaceutical economics
clinical trial funding
regulatory barriers
Questions to Reflect On
- How can we incentivize non‑profit medical breakthroughs?
- What alternative funding could sustain such trials?
A Different Perspective
Profit motives can limit support for curative, non‑commercial treatments.
![“When a drug comes out [that's broadly prescribed] there are going to start to be a lot of people on it [in a million person cohort] and you might get therefore an early signal of something unexpected that hadn't come through in the clinical trials. And I'm sure [drug companies] would love it if…” quote by Francis Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/dda/francis-collins-5281_able_when-a-drug-comes-out-that-s-broadly-pre_408526.jpg)
