Academia Europaea Position Paper on Translational Medicine: The Cycle Model for Translating Scientific Results into Community Benefits

TLDR

Translational science is increasingly prominent, yet much remains to be done before scientific results are optimally integrated into everyday health practice, as highlighted by the European Commission’s report that 1.2 million deaths in Europe in 2016 were avoidable through primary prevention. Academia Europaea launched a project to develop a TM cycle model that accelerates the use of scientific knowledge for public and community benefit. The TM cycle model, co‑created by researchers, journal editors, translational medicine leaders, media, academics, and university leaders, balances acquisition of new results, clear summarization, and broad communication to all stakeholders. The model is expected to significantly advance translational medicine and enable more efficient, cost‑effective healthcare.

Abstract

Translational science has gained prominence in medicine, but there is still much work to be done before scientific results are used optimally and incorporated into everyday health practice. As the main focus is still on generating new scientific data with financial resources primarily available for that purpose, other activities that are necessary in the transition from research to community benefit are considered less needy. The European Statistical Office of the European Commission has recently reported that 1.7 million people under 75 years of age died in Europe in 2016, with around 1.2 million of those deaths being avoidable through effective primary prevention and public health intervention. Therefore, Academia Europaea, one of the five Pan-European networks that form SAPEA (Science Advice for Policy by European Academies), a key element of the European Commission's Scientific Advice Mechanism (SAM), has launched a project to develop a model to facilitate and accelerate the utilisation of scientific knowledge for public and community benefit.During the process, leaders in the field, including prominent basic and clinical researchers, editors-in-chief of high-impact journals publishing translational research articles, translational medicine (TM) centre leaders, media representatives, academics and university leaders, developed the TM cycle, a new model that we believe could significantly advance the development of TM.This model focuses equally on the acquisition of new scientific results healthcare, understandable and digestible summation of results, and their communication to all participants. We have also renewed the definition in TM, identified challenges and recommended solutions.The authors, including senior officers of Academia Europaea, produced this document to serve as a basis for revising thinking on TM with the end result of enabling more efficient and cost-effective healthcare.