A Multidisciplinary Exploration of Similarities in Drug Resistance in Rapidly Evolving Diseases

The occurrence of drug resistance negatively impacts the lives of millions of patients by limiting the longevity of many of our most potent drugs. In most cases, drug resistance is investigated as a disease specific endeavor, with no centralized, cross-disciplinary network in the world, limiting intellectual progress and breakthroughs. Clinicians and researchers are often unaware of the progress, resources and parallels in other diseases. However, it is increasingly clear that close parallels can often be drawn between resistance seen in one disease state and resistance seen within another. Cross-disciplinary collaboration and discussion are permitting a better understanding of resistance and may soon result in real clinical benefits. The new Gordon Research Conference entitled "Drug Resistance" is devoted to recognizing the parallels among quickly evolving diseases. The goal is to bring the challenge of drug resistance to the forefront of drug design strategies.