Daiichi Sankyo research exec points out 'a lot of hype' around biomarkers

Robert Beckman, executive director, clinical development oncology at Japanese drug major Daiichi Sankyo (TYO: 4568), has spoken openly about his work at Daiichi Sankyo towards incorporating predictive biomarkers into oncology drug development to achieve patient stratification.

In a recent interview with events organizer Hanson Wade, Dr Beckman stated: “Frankly there is a lot of hype around biomarkers and everybody expects them to be spectacularly successful every time. Of course, the failures don't get published in Nature and Science.”

He opened with an interesting point that reinforces just how difficult it is to get this right. The vast majority of the industry now acknowledges that biomarkers and personalized medicine are the way forward, but there are still major challenges in making this approach truly efficient and cost effective.