A new study suggests that every £1 invested in medical research benefits society by 25p per year, every year.
The figure is the culmination of a decade-long series of What’s it Worth? studies that explored the economic return of public and charity-funded medical research.
The final paper, published in Health Research Policy and Systems, investigated the return on musculoskeletal disease research, and supported the findings of studies into cancer and cardiovascular research.
Martin Buxton, former Director of Brunel’s Health Economics Research Group, led the research. He said: “The studies we have done address the important question as to whether there is an economic return on the totality of research spending in a broad area. And for the three areas of medical research that we have studied, that clearly is the case.”
It’s hoped a better understanding of the economic impact of health research will help secure future funding, and show how it provides real-world improvements.