Can Blockchain Save Lives?

I was talking to a friend last night who’s in the pharmaceutical industry. She’s a medical sales rep who’s worked for some of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. You could say that she’s a veteran in her field. Throughout the evening, we kept returning to the topic of the increasingly devastating problem of global healthcare, specifically in China.

Cancer rates of the 14 most common kinds in China are expected to increase by 65% to 4.3 million people by 2030 compared to 2010 (valueinhealthjournal.com). On top of that, the Chinese healthcare is, frankly, not equipped to handle this growth of patients. Specifically, the adoption and distribution of leading western medicines.

Most industries want a surge in users, but healthcare is a little different. A drastic spike in predicted cancer patients is good for the healthcare industry from a business standpoint, but detrimental from a humanity or a policy standpoint. This reason is why healthcare has vaulted itself to one of the hottest investment sectors in China recently, on the verge of overtaking real estate.

Another reason though, is that much of the industry needs to be reformed, especially in rural areas where residents often have to pay a significant out of pocket percentage against income. Despite insurance coverage, out of pocket pay can still be twice as much as a monthly income for a large section of the population (world health organization). This is why it is broadly accepted in China that along with children and education, healthcare is a “whatever-it-costs” type of thing for a population notorious for saving.

Cancer research has seen multiple breakthroughs, but the one we were discussing last night I cannot disclose, unfortunately (as they are still in clinical trials). My friend mentioned that for a new, western cancer drug to enter China, the minimum time is 6 years — with it often taking longer than a decade (Novotech.com). This seemed bewildering, as the disease rarely allows a patient to survive that long. I asked her why, and it turns out that the majority of the duration is spent finding the right patients for clinical trials. This is a huge problem for the pharmaceutical industry.

Frankly, it isn’t as simple as finding “patient with cancer A” and giving them “drug A”. China has notoriously strict restrictions on medical imports, especially pharmaceutical drugs. These restrictions drastically decrease the number of foreign drugs available in the China market, thereby lessening the exposure China has to western medicine.

This lack of exposure is amplified by the inherent distrust that Chinese patients have towards western drugs. As a result, this trust barrier is something that prevents many new drugs from finding the right patients to commence clinical trials within China. Guaranteeing trust is a huge part of where blockchain can potentially improve this system, and in this case, it could save lives.

The first thing you learn about blockchain is that it allows transparent and “trustless” transactions, but most people think of transactions as purely financial when in fact, they can involve any sort of data — including a step by step consultation, registration, and approval for clinical trials which could be performed as a series of transactions verified and secured on blockchain.

Perhaps, by bringing complete transparency (and therefore reassuring safety and potentially a cure), such a platform could attract more and more participants for clinical trials. My friend told me that if a better way to access clinical trial participants did exist, it could speed up the market entry for a cancer drug drastically.

For the drug companies, the time saved could be reallocated to further research with more data, allowing for the faster development of more effective treatments. For the patients, this could potentially save their lives.

Healthcare is simply too important of an industry for us to not innovate in. In fact, when you look around at some of the leading tech companies in the world, they’re all turning their eyes into this sector. Amazon recently famously bought PillPack recently for 1 Billion dollars, and Apple launched many new functions to their health app with their new update this week. A more improved dedicated focus is shown consistently by tech firms all over the world, and I think it’s time for blockchain to join the fray.

For the record, I am not saying that the only barrier to getting through drug trials is trust and that it can only be solved by blockchain — the answer is much more complicated than that. But it does make me wonder about whether or not, with a little more time, energy and planning, someone could create a blockchain application that would at least move us in the right direction.

After all, lives are at stake.