Learn more about Harrington Discovery Institute’s recent success in fulfilling its mission to accelerate promising discoveries into medicines for unmet needs.
Learn more about Harrington Discovery Institute’s recent success in fulfilling its mission to accelerate promising discoveries into medicines for unmet needs.
University Hospitals is home to a novel and effective engine driving medical research and drug discovery in Harrington Discovery Institute. Harrington Discovery Institute at University Hospitals invites you to enjoy its 2020 – 2021 Annual Publication Breakthroughs to Cures to learn more about recent success in fulfilling its mission to accelerate promising discoveries into medicines for unmet needs.
More than 500 million people worldwide are living today with diseases that have no available treatments. Despite breathtaking advances in basic science, economic and regulatory environments have led to an unacceptable low rate of new therapeutics. Harrington Discovery Institute was established in 2012 specifically to address this problem. Now celebrating its 10th anniversary, Harrington Discovery Institute extends University Hospitals’ reach by supporting the best physicians and scientists in the U.S. Canada and U.K., specifically in the major diseases affecting society, such as cancer and heart disease, as well as in brain health, rare diseases and COVID-19.
The results speak for themselves. For over 10 years, Harrington Discovery Institute has supported the most promising discoveries at 65 institutions, provided world-renowned industry expertise to help advance 165 drugs-in-the-making, enabled 17 new medicines to reach patients through clinical trials and have 13 new therapeutics licensed to pharmaceutical firms. Drug discovery and development is difficult and it takes time, but we are already seeing powerful outcomes.
“Historically, it can take up to 10 years to develop a drug and advance it through clinical trials and, in the process, many worthwhile discoveries are lost,” explained Jonathan Stamler, MD, President, Harrington Discovery Institute at UH; Director, Institute for Transformative Molecular Medicine; and Robert S. & Sylvia K. Reitman Family Foundation Distinguished Chair in Cardiovascular Innovation; Professor of Medicine and Biochemistry, CWRU. “But thanks to the visionary foresight of the Harrington family, we find research with breakthrough potential and surround that physician-scholar with the resources and support they need to accelerate that timeline.”
Harrington Discovery provides physicians-scholars with critical funding as well as a drug development team (including a pharma leader with experience bringing drugs to market, a business development advisor and a project manager). This unique structure helps to move discoveries through the complex clinical trial process more efficiently for the benefit of patients everywhere. Additionally, Harrington cultivates diverse funding sources, evidenced by global partnerships with Morgan Stanley GIFT Cures powered by Harrington Discovery Institute, The Advent-Harrington Impact Fund, and the Harrington Discovery Institute Seed fund.
“Science improves the lives of our loved ones," explained Ronald G. Harrington. "The opportunity to invest in impact is a blessing; bringing medicines to those in need is a duty; and the power of this program is a gift.”