NIH grantees win 2019 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine https://www.nih.gov/news-events/new...s-win-2019-nobel-prize-physiology-or-medicine "Dr. Kaelin has received continuous funding since 1990, totaling more than $30 million from NIH’s National Cancer Institute. Dr. Semenza has received funding from NIH since 1988, totaling more than $20.3 million, primarily from NIH’s National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases." My view: This is tax-payer's money well spent. Novel insights into hypoxia sensing may well lead to new cancer therapies in the future. Question: Why didn't the private sector come up with those discoveries?
Good question. My guess is they thought it wasn't terribly relevant or that there was no profit motive behind it.
It's hard to make a profit off something that isn't known. I believe that most of our current knowledge of molecular medicine would not exist without publically funded university research. Thus, billion of dollars of profits for the Pharma and Biomed industry would not exist. In this case, the $50 million public investment may lead to billions of dollars of GDP down the road. Of course, if you listen to the likes of Sarah Palin, NIH-funded fruit fly research is a waste of tax-payer's money. Nevermind that Drosophila is the most important model organism for genetic research.
