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Asked by marvel_obsessed to Flavia, Sheona, Jack, Giuditta, Craig on 7 Nov 2015.
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Flavia de Almeida Dias answered on 7 Nov 2015:
Hello!
I don’t work with biology/medicine and I don’t really know the answer to your question. However, I have seen science in action in other fields, and I think that is it possible that the failed cure for something could be successful for other conditions – but I don’t think that scientist should trash their ideas because it did not work in one specific case (and I hope biologists don’t)! There are protocols and methods which scientists follow when doing research, and you should ask a medicine/biology person what is their protocol dealing with a negative result when researching diseases. Sorry I can’t be of more help!
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Giuditta Perversi answered on 10 Nov 2015:
I’m not a biologist/pharmacist/doctor, so my knowledge of the field is always borrowed by other scientist who were kind enough to engage with me on the topic.
I know for sure that there are drugs that used to have a purpose, they where decommissioned, but then years later someone else thought about reusing them for another disease and was successful.
As far as I know, in the field of drug development you never really “throw away” something, you keep record of it.
As scientist, we tend to publish our work in specific journals so that we can keep updated on what’s happening in a certain subject; I know it’s common for biologist/biotechnologist/doctors to report failed attempt and not only the successful ones.
If someone else has a better idea to make it work or a better application for it, you can pick it up and go on with the work (as long as you quote your sources)! -
Jack Carlyle answered on 10 Nov 2015:
Anything is possible… It seems unlikely, though. But as the other two said, scientists never really “get rid” of results 🙂
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