Three years of ABM are behind us. What has been done?

During this year's Economic Forum in Karpacz, you presented a report summarizing the first three years of operation of the Medical Research Agency. What are the main conclusions of the report?

The agency has been operating for three years and this is the time when we can make some summaries, reassumptions of what we have done. And although we are the youngest agency of the Ministry of Health, we wanted to self-evaluate and show what we have managed to do. There are many such successes, hence it is worth pointing to some undeveloped areas that have not had an owner so far and have become the Agency's domain. In the last three years, we have contracted over PLN 2 billion for the development of Polish biotechnology and clinical trials. So we fulfilled the role that was placed in us. On the other hand, what pleases me most, 50,000 patients participate in our research. This means that 50,000 people have a chance of a longer, better life, or a life in general. Remember that clinical trials are about access to modern therapies, which may appear in reimbursement for a year, two or five years. From the point of view of oncological or hematological patients, this time is often simply not there. So it is a good job where the patient is the ultimate beneficiary of our actions. Moreover, the Agency becomes an animator of biotechnology in Poland. Over the past year, the council of ministers adopted our strategy for the development of biomedicine for the next 10 years. This is an unprecedented document, which, on the one hand, indicates that an additional PLN 2 billion will be given to Polish biotechnology start-ups, Polish pharmaceutical companies or research teams in general, for this sector to develop, because it is also an important sector of the economy. For the first time, the Polish government sees potential in this. We have the opportunity to develop in this direction. This makes us very happy. I am convinced that in the field of medical devices and widely understood artificial intelligence, we have a chance to become a leader in Central and Eastern Europe.

You mentioned the development of biotechnology. This is one of the roles that has been given to the Medical Research Agency. What are your priorities for this sector for the coming years?

We would definitely like to animate the start-up market in Poland. I think we have a lot of potential here. Young Poles have a lot of cool ideas. So we would like to provide them with a stable source of financing, so that start-ups will transform over time into small, medium-sized, and then (who knows) into large enterprises, into the first Polish unicorns. I think this is the right direction. Certainly, medical data will be a challenge on the Agency's agenda in the coming years. I think this will be the future. We observe the European Commission, which is also preparing legislation in this area, shows how important data is for decision-making in the system and how much can be learned from this analysis. Therefore, we would like to lean in this direction so that the Agency becomes a place that creates modern technologies. I mean activities in the field of artificial intelligence or telemedicine (all these are data activities), but also on large volumes so that decision-makers, the minister of health, can make decisions based on real system data.