Governmental toxicology regulations: an encumbrance to drug research?

The science of toxicology has become infinitely more complex and sophisticated over the past 20 years, a trend which has been particularly marked within the research-based pharmaceutical industry. Governmental rules and regulations have had a strong impact on the types of toxicity test now performed on drugs both in the course of their development and after their introduction on the market, and have thus contributed to the increased cost--in terms of time and money--of drug development. However, it will never be possible to measure or predict the safety of drugs in man by the application of toxicological techniques alone. Close collaboration between toxicologists and the authorities responsible for drawing up toxicological regulations is called for in order to ensure that the rules applied during the important and fascinating process of discovering and developing new drugs do not become unnecessarily burdensome.