Burden, economic impact and research gaps. - 29

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BURDEN, ECONOMIC IMPACT AND RESEARCH GAPS: KEY FINDINGS FROM THE PAN-EUROPEAN STUDY ON DIGESTIVE DISEASES AND CANCERS
Research and Funding Opportunities
In order to investigate where some of the key priorities lie in the field of digestive
health and how some of the previously outlined challenges can be addressed, UEG
consulted with national society members, as well as examining distributions of
research activity and European Commission funding for digestive disease and
cancer-related research.
With regards to the spread of research and funding,
several observations were outlined:
* Digestive diseases and cancers are underfunded
compared with some non-digestive diseases
Several digestive diseases including
alcohol-related liver disease and pancreatitis,
were noticeably underfunded in relation to their
disease burden compared with other
non-digestive diseases, such as diabetes,
multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease and
other types of dementia.
In addition to this, of the digestive cancers
available to analyse, colorectal cancer and
pancreatic cancer appeared to be underfunded
in relation to their burden compared with some
non-digestive system-related cancers.
* Furthermore, a large proportion of other digestive
diseases, including IBS, gastroesophageal reflux
disease, eosinophilic oesophagitis and coeliac
disease, which are on the rise, received limited,
if any, research funding in the form of
Horizon 2020 grants
IBS, for example, one of the most common
digestive diseases with limited treatment options,
which significantly impacts quality of life and
generates high costs, received little in the way
of Horizon 2020 research funding in relation to
its burden, with research activity in terms of
publication output also being relatively low.
Just
€1.7 million
in Horizon 2020 funding was given to IBS
Burden, economic impact and research gaps.

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