Report's $648 million figure undervalues cancer R&D costs, says group

A report published in the Journal of the American Medical Association that puts the median cost of developing a single cancer drug at $648 million is ‘not a valid contribution’ to the issue, says a German trade group.

The German Association of Research-Based Pharmaceutical Companies claims that the report, by US medics Vinay Prasad and Sham Mailankody, leaves out important cost drivers and uses a flawed sample.