Charlton Bruce G
School of Biology and Psychology, University of Newcastle upon Tyne.
Clin Med (Lond). 2006 Mar-Apr;6(2):163-5. doi: 10.7861/clinmedicine.6-2-163.
Sciences tend to go through boom and bust phases. Following decades of rapid expansion, medical science is now due for a collapse in overall funding. Furthermore, there has been a decline in the rate of therapeutic innovation, with fewer significant breakthroughs and little progress in several major areas of medicine such as oncology, psychiatry and autoimmune disorders. Mainstream medical research has gradually evolved into a form similar to industrial research and development (R&D), aiming at steady, reliable, predictable progress by ringing minor variations on existing approaches. Where this risk-averse approach is failing, a more speculative strategy is indicated. A new research specialty of 'pure medical science' would aim to seek radical new theories, technologies and therapies, and subject these to professional evaluation to the point where they can be applied in practice by more mainstream 'applied' medical scientists. A specialty of 'pure medical science' might be launched by financial support from patrons who wish to be associated with an elite new medical research discipline.
各学科往往会经历兴衰阶段。在经历了数十年的快速扩张之后，医学科学目前正面临整体资金的缩减。此外，治疗创新的速度有所下降，在肿瘤学、精神病学和自身免疫性疾病等几个主要医学领域，重大突破减少，进展甚微。主流医学研究已逐渐演变成一种类似于工业研发（R&D）的形式，旨在通过对现有方法进行微小改动来实现稳定、可靠、可预测的进展。当这种规避风险的方法失效时，就需要一种更具投机性的策略。一个“纯医学科学”的新研究领域旨在寻求全新的理论、技术和疗法，并对这些进行专业评估，直至它们能够被更主流的“应用”医学科学家应用于实践。“纯医学科学”领域可能会由希望与一门精英新医学研究学科相关联的赞助者提供资金支持而启动。
