This week, REMEDi4ALL welcomed researchers from across Europe to the Wellcome Genome Campus, Cambridge for the second edition of the Drug Repurposing Bootcamp for Academics: a two‑day, hands‑on training designed to help academic teams navigate the full repurposing pathway and accelerate promising ideas towards patient impact.
Day One: Understanding the Repurposing Journey
After REMEDi4ALL set the scene with an overview of the drug repurposing landscape and the critical role academic groups play in driving early‑stage innovation, invited speakers shared key insights and real-world experiences of drug repurposing:
A case study in successful repurposing: Prof. Julian Sampson (Cardiff University) outlined the development of everolimus for tuberous sclerosis – illustrating how drug repurposing is rarely linear, requiring persistence, collaboration and strategic decision‑making.
Planning for patient benefit from the outset: Rosan Kreeftmeijer‑Vegter (EATRIS) introduced key concepts for the drug repurposing pathway including Target Product Profiles (TPPs) and Repurposing Development Plans (RDPs), giving participants a framework to map the development pathway and anticipate downstream steps.
Collaboration as a driver of success: Other key topics highlights included on‑ and off‑label access considerations (Rick Thompson, Beacon for rare diseases), public-private partnerships and how to engage with the commercial pathway to repurposing (David Cavalla, Serenatis Bio) and the importance of meaningful engagement with patients from the inicial stages of a drug repurposing project (Zoe Alahouzou, EURORDIS).
The day concluded with Repurpolis, an interactive board‑game where participants worked in teams to bring a repurposed therapy to patients while managing development steps, timelines and budgets.
Day Two: Regulation, Funding and Communicating Your Science
On day two, focus shifted towards the practicalities of advancing a repurposing project.
Navigating the regulatory landscape: Daniel O’Connor (ABPI) emphasised the importance of early dialogue with regulators and how scientific advice can de‑risk development strategies.
Funding Drug Repurposing Projects: Heleen van der Meer (ZonMw) shared insights into how funders assess proposals, underscoring the need for credible plans and clear patient‑centred reasoning.
Evaluating project value: Dalma Hosszú (Syreon Research Institute) introduced the recently developed REMEDi4ALL Value Assessment Framework, with a practical exercise where participants reviewed a funding case study.
Effective pitching: In a dynamic session, Carmel Reilly (UCL) guided participants through communicating their science convincingly to diverse audiences including funders.
Participants had the opportunity to apply their learning through mock funding pitches and group exercises across the two-day programme.
Thank you to all speakers, partners and participants for two days of thoughtful discussion, practical learning and community building! For more information and opportunities to get involved along with other training opportunities, explore the REMEDi4ALL Repurposing Academy homepage.
