By 2050, 22% of the world's population will be over 60, according to WHO figures. That's 10% more than in 2000.
After all, that's the goal of modern society: to improve our life expectancy.
Hygiene, diet, access to healthcare, pre-diagnosis and technology: everything is in place to promote longevity, at a time when, paradoxically, the management of seniority is the subject of debate.
This raises the question of longevity and prevention, issues in which pharmaceutical companies have a role to play in healthy aging.
Longevity, preventive health care and ageing well: what are we talking about?
Longevity, health prevention, disease pre-diagnosis... there are many different definitions of what we mean by "ageing well".
Because that's what it's all about: making a positive contribution to life expectancy by maintaining healthy, pleasant conditions for senior citizens.
While the terms are mixed and it's difficult to pinpoint a direction, the trend does exist, and it represents a real opportunity for pharmaceutical companies.
Longevity medicine: the emerging trend
Longevity refers to the lifespan of a species, group or individual, and today there is an emerging trend towards longevity medicine.
In fact, literature has seized on the subject, most recently in Dr. Christophe de Jaeger's book, published in October 2023 by Editions Trédaniel, entitled: médecine de la longévité, une révolution.
The book presents senescence, or aging, not as an inescapable process, but as a "primary disease" on which it is possible to take effective action thanks to the sciences of longevity. The author outlines emerging therapeutic strategies aimed at slowing down, or even reversing, aging, and considers the societal implications of what he calls a revolution.
And like many trends, if this one is discreet in France, it's no longer so in the United States, where the subject is widely exploited.
In the context of the US market, the term "longevity" refers to a vast and rapidly expanding industry focused on extending human lifespan and improving quality of life with age. It includes products, literature, services and technologies aimed at promoting sustainable health (the number of healthy, active years of life) and reducing age-related diseases, notably through prevention.
Preventive health care in France: a "suitcase word
When we talk about preventive health care in France, the term is vast and used mainly by mutual insurance companies, government initiatives and health insurance companies. This doesn't necessarily do it justice, as it becomes compartmentalized into the sum total of actions put in place by public structures to have a certain number of examinations and tests performed on individuals, paid for by them.
However, preventive healthcare covers all actions and measures aimed at avoiding the onset, aggravation or recurrence of disease. It also aims to maintain or improve health through proactive and educational interventions.
But it's this term that seems closest to the emerging trend of anticipating health risks, intercepting disease and promoting well-being.
A whole range of related concepts that could be grouped together under the heading of ageing well, or augmented health prevention, the approach we take in this article.
Aging well: intervening before illness strikes
Today, thanks to technological and medical advances, it is possible to take action before illness manifests itself or becomes serious, and thus contribute to healthy aging.
What we might call "augmented health prevention".
In this sense, it's also a question of the individual taking charge of his or her own interception of disease, under the banner of "prevention is better than cure".
Preventing disease is a combination of proactive prevention, early detection and rapid treatment or self-treatment. Thanks to technology, it is becoming increasingly possible to anticipate risks and take action before the onset or progression of disease.
This not only improves quality of life, but also reduces the costs of curative care and hospitalization.
How?
Through tools such as personalized health check-ups, genetics and early biomarkers. Thanks also to pre-diagnosis offered by advanced medical imaging, connected devices (wearables) and artificial intelligence.
Finally, the French healthcare system is increasingly moving towards treating patients before hospitalization becomes necessary. We speak of homecare, ambulatory health centers, or teleconsultation and telemonitoring.
And what is only a trend today, is tomorrow's opportunity for pharmaceutical companies. From longevity and augmented health prevention to disease interception, ageing well is definitely the segment to look to when identifying new innovative projects with a mission, and new ways of reaching their final target.
Why is healthy living an opportunity for pharmaceutical companies?
Pharmaceutical companies play a key role in promoting longevity and ageing well, and are involved at several levels: research, prevention, diagnosis, treatment and innovation.
A role reinforced by the context in which our healthcare system is evolving.
Indeed, the public hospital system is in crisis, a crisis exacerbated by the pandemic. Despite a 20 billion euro rescue plan, the 25% drop in the number of beds over the past 20 years reflects a complicated context that is forcing the French healthcare system to make a necessary transformation.
France's healthcare system: a necessary transformation
Once considered one of the best in the world, France's healthcare system is in the throes of a crisis, accentuated and highlighted by the Covid context. Public hospitals are particularly hard hit, with alarming signs such as the number of vacancies leading to bed closures, the increase in mid-career departures and recruitment difficulties. This situation is exacerbated by the saturation of emergency services, and is unlikely to improve as human life expectancy increases.
Therefore, reinforcing augmented prevention measures for wellness, such as personalized health check-ups, early screening and the adoption of healthy lifestyles, can significantly reduce the incidence of chronic diseases and "avoidable" conditions on hospital charges.
This is because they help to reduce hospital visits for conditions that could have been prevented, thereby improving the quality of care for patients requiring urgent or specialized treatment.
And in 2018, the French government actually launched the "Priorité prévention" plan, an interministerial project to improve the health of the population by addressing all aspects, whether environmental or behavioral, and covering the different ages of life.
Finally, by investing in augmented health prevention and ageing well, it is possible to reduce pressure on hospitals, improve the overall health of the population and encourage the efficiency of the French healthcare system. The opportunity is undeniable.
Today's longevity factors point to aging well
Today's longevity factors are those that contribute to living longer while maintaining a good quality of life, and help ensure good aging. Among the best-known:
- Biological factors: preserving your health capital by anticipating risks linked to heredity, chronic inflammation and hormonal balance.
- Environmental factors: maintain a healthy living environment by taking care of air quality, sun exposure and ensuring early access to preventive care.
- Behavioral factors: adopt healthy habits through a balanced diet that often includes supplements, regular physical activity, good quality sleep and avoidance of risky behaviors (tobacco, alcohol, drugs).
- Medical and technological innovations: through early detection of pathologies, personalized preventive medicine, research into senolytics (drugs that eliminate senescent cells) and genetic therapy.
A changing healthcare system and an ever-increasing number of longevity factors are arguments in favor of pharmaceutical companies taking an assertive stance in the ageing well equation. There are many opportunities for major French groups to make a difference by fulfilling their mission.
Pharmaceutical companies explore four levers for ageing well
In addition to their current value proposition, such as vaccinations and preventive medicines, pharmaceutical companies have a role to play in the ageing well approach.
In fact, they are the only ones with the resources, skills and capacity for innovation required to offer sustainable longevity solutions. Their contribution goes beyond the manufacture of drugs.
So what are the opportunities offered by ageing well for pharmaceutical companies?
Research and development of innovative treatments
R&D for innovative treatments is a core business for pharmaceutical companies. In the context of ageing well, the opportunities are particularly focused on :
- Age-related chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, osteoarthritis and cancer.
- Neurodegenerative pathologies: Alzheimer's and Parkinson's among the best-known.
- Cell regeneration with stem cell therapies.
- Anti-aging drugs through the development of molecules capable of acting directly on the biological mechanisms of aging, such as powerful antioxidants or telomere regulators.
The development of prevention and early diagnosis technologies
Biomarkers are the best example of this. They enable early detection of pathologies before symptoms appear. Prevention and early diagnosis technologies also include
- Screening tests: early detection of cancers (mammography, colorectal cancer screening, blood tests).
- Genetic testing: assessment of genetic predisposition to certain diseases, to adapt behavior and treatment.
The challenge for pharmaceutical companies, with biomarkers for example, could be to enter into a logic of patient follow-up. This would lead to a different way of treating and prescribing.
Production of chronic and palliative treatments
Aging is often accompanied by chronic illnesses requiring long-term care. Laboratories can play an active role:
- Via medication to better manage chronic diseases (hypertension, diabetes, heart failure).
- Targeted therapies such as personalized treatments that target precise mechanisms within the body to reduce side effects.
- Palliative solutions to improve quality of life for patients with incurable or end-of-life diseases.
Identifying a new player: the end user
The notion of augmented health prevention or "ageing well" implies a paradigm shift for end-users. While prevention is traditionally the prerogative of public institutions in many developed countries, ageing well is becoming an individual issue, and one for which the individual takes personal responsibility.
Everyone can take care of their own health through prevention and by their own means.
The aim for pharmaceutical companies is therefore to develop innovative treatments that will reach a wide audience, and to contribute to changing behaviors and habits towards this new economic model where the end-user is the payer.
Longevity and ageing well: a promising lever for pharmaceutical companies
The aging of the world's population is unavoidable, and so is the need to transform the healthcare system. Aging well is an emerging challenge.
Whether investing in research into innovative treatments, developing early diagnosis technologies or offering enhanced prevention solutions, pharmaceutical companies play a key role in supporting this societal evolution.
By committing themselves to this approach, they are helping to redefine the very notion of health and longevity.
