What have we learned through animal research?

boy using asthma inhaler

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you have ever had a vaccination, taken a headache pill or been given an antibiotic, you have benefited from animal research.

Every major breakthrough in medical science that we know today has depended in part on animals. This doesn't just mean medicines (for diabetes, asthma, leukaemia and many other serious illnesses), but medical procedures too such as blood transfusions and transplant surgery. And it isn't just humans that have benefited. Nearly all of the medicines and medical procedures that we use for animals were also developed through the use of animal research.

But there are still many serious conditions that have no cure. Cancer treatments have improved greatly over the last few years but we still have a long way to go. Cystic fibrosis, which causes the lungs to clog up with mucus, affects one in every 2,500 babies, and another killer, muscular dystrophy, puts 1 in 3,500 boys in a wheelchair by age 11. Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s damage the brain and cause a great deal of suffering. AIDS continues to devastate the lives of millions of people.

Through animal research we have a good chance of finding effective treatments for all those conditions and many others. Without it, we cannot expect any major new medical advances.

Click here to move through our timeline of medical advances achieved with the help of animal research.

 

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