Project Summary
The Forum on Drug Discovery, Development, and Translation (the Forum) of the National
Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (the National Academies) was created in 2005
by the National Academies’ Board on Health Sciences Policy to foster communication,
collaboration, and action in a neutral setting on issues of mutual interest across the drug research
and development lifecycle. The Forum membership includes leaders from the National Institutes
of Health, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the biopharmaceutical industry, academia,
consortia, foundations, journals, and patient-focused and disease advocacy organizations. Through
the Forum’s activities, participants have been better able to bring attention and visibility to
important issues, explore new approaches for resolving problem areas, share information and find
common ground, and work together to develop ideas into concrete actions and new collaborations.
The Forum convenes a few times each year to identify and discuss key problems and strategies in
the discovery, development, and translation of drugs. To supplement the perspectives and expertise
of its members, the Forum also holds public workshops to engage a wide range of experts,
members of the public, and the policy community. The Forum also fosters collaborations among
its members and constituencies.
The Forum serves as a hub and catalyst for nurturing new ideas and partnerships and offers a
neutral space for stakeholders to advance critical policy discussions on biopharmaceutical
innovation nationally and globally. Looking ahead, the Forum plans to focus on important issues
such improving innovation in drug research and development for highly prevalent chronic
diseases, and accelerating progress towards a clinical trials enterprise that is more efficient,
effective, patient-centered, and integrated into the health delivery system.
For more information about the Forum on Drug Discovery, Development, and Translation, please
visit www.nationalacademies.org/Drug