5 October 2018 - The most significant advances in medical treatments are being made with biological products that are significantly more expensive than traditional small molecule drugs. 

This is placing significant upward pressure on the cost of publicly funded medicines. For example, in the US, biological medicines accounted for 40% of all prescription drugs spending and 70% of the increase in healthcare spending in the five years to 2015.

The additional cost associated with biological medicines is largely due to the complexity of the products. Unlike small molecules that are chemically synthesised, biological medicines are usually complex proteins produced by living cells, such that differences may exist between different batches of the same biologic. Safety and effectiveness can also be affected by small changes in manufacturing, packaging and storage conditions.

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