Full Description
This book examines animal research conducted with the goal of medical translation to humans. It is written by Dr. Bradley Weiner, a surgeon who is active at a high level clinically and in biomedical research. After documenting that the vast majority of biomedical animal research fails to result in benefits to humans via translation, the book examines the sources of such failure; including the failure to justify the use of animals, the failure to properly apply scientific methods, the failure to perform the research properly in the lab, the failure to consider the possibility of translation a priori, and systematic sources of failure built into the biomedical research enterprise. The book then explores options to improve the situation, for the benefit of both the animals and humans.
Contents
1. IntroductionThis chapter will outline the reasons for the book having been written. It will cover the potential benefits of animal research to medicine and human health; and discuss why that potential is so rarely actualized. The common thread being a failure of scientific methodology.
2. Critique
This section will include chapters delineating these failures of methodology and explore the repercussions of such failures.
a. The Ideal Study---This chapter will discuss how animal models can provide the ideal setting to study therapeutic interventions for human disease; and each of the steps required to make sure the research is scientifically sound.
b. What Can Go Wrong?---This chapter will cover how failures in each of the above noted steps can result in invalid scientific conclusions; providing no valid data that could support translation to humans.
c. Does It Really Go Wrong?---This chapter will demonstrate just how frequently medical animal studies are flawed / invalid / of little use. It will cover as-yet unpublished research from my lab evaluating such flaws across a wide array of medical fields (orthopedics, diabetes, spinal cord injury, liver disease, etc).
d. The Consequences---This chapter will address why the methodological failures need to be addressed. Simply, the volume of animals sacrificed without a chance of providing valid / translational information is appalling. Hence, the 'giving animals a chance' thing...a chance to make a difference.
3. Construction
While the previous section was 'critical', this section will be 'constructive'; delineating the ways we can improve the situation. The 'Ideal Study' will be revisited and each step will be carefully covered with methods provided for researchers to ensure they have their 'ducks in a row'. It will also be a resource / checklist for animal use committees to ensure the studies are completed in a manner that best ensures the animals are 'given a chance' to make a positive difference in human health.
4. Summary and Conclusions
A wrap up. And discussion on the inextricable ties between scientific methodology and medical philosophy / ethics.
