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The close relationship between basic and clinical research at the NIH
has reflected Louis Pasteur's observation that science is indivisible:
"There is only science and the fruits of science." On the NIH campus,
intramural clinical investigators interact with their basic science colleagues
with the aim of developing improved intervention strategies for treating
the knottiest disease problems. The NIH also holds Consensus Development
Conferences of investigators and physicians from around the world at which
panels of experts appraise new modes of therapy or evaluate existing therapies
about which questions have been raised. The first, held in 1977, recommended
mammography as a routine diagnostic tool for breast cancer in women over
fifty. Since then more than 100 Consensus Development Conferences have
rapidly channeled research findings on devices, drugs, and medical or
surgical procedures to practicing physicians.
Biomedical research and development is a continuing process. New knowledge
yields new drugs, devices, and procedures; the study of how the products
act yields more knowledge; refinements in knowledge then enable the development
of even better therapies. Whether an idea originates in a university laboratory
or starts with basic product research carried out in the private sector,
important findings percolate through the entire scientific community.
Each new finding serves as a building block for establishing a deeper
understanding of human health and disease. The 1986
Technology Transfer Act codified and fostered partnerships between
NIH research and private-sector development of therapeutic products.
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Poster for a 1995 Consensus Development
Conference about a medical problem widely suffered by travelers. |
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Poster for 1997 Consensus Development
Conference on biomaterials. |
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