Research is failing to keep up with the world’s biggest health threats

As the global impact of non-communicable diseases (e.g., cancer, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes) increases, research focus is not adapting at the same rate, finds new research from Mannheim Business School.

Dr. Leo Schmallenbach and Professor Marc Lerchenmüller from Mannheim Business School, alongside colleagues, investigated the misalignment between research and disease impact. They linked 8.6 million disease-specific research publications to global disease burden data from 1999 to 2021, the latest year for which disease burden data is currently available.

Despite research appearing to increasingly align with global disease burden over the two decades, the researchers find this is largely due to the declining impact of communicable diseases (e.g., tuberculosis) on global health. This trend makes research appear better aligned with disease burden, even though actual research priorities are not adapting to the growing impact of non-communicable diseases.

If this current trend continues, the divergence between research and disease is projected to widen by a third over the next 25 years; a risk significantly accelerated by cuts in US public funding for international research.

“Our study also examines the possible short- and long-term effects of changes in US research and funding policy. These analyses show a significant weakening of research for infectious diseases, which will hit the Global South hard, but also chronic diseases, such as neurological diseases, which affect Western healthcare systems,” says Prof. Lerchenmüller.

To prevent widening of the research-disease gap, the researchers emphasise the importance of real-time monitoring to devise responsive funding strategies, coordinated by global bodies. Key research countries, such as the US, are integral to these efforts, but the changing global policy and research landscape may jeopardise progress.

These findings were first published in the journal Nature Medicine in August 2025.

/ENDS

For more information, a copy of the research paper, or to speak with Dr. Leo Schmallenbach or Professor Marc Lerchenmüller, please contact Kyle Grizzell from BlueSky Education on +44 (0) 1582 790709 or kyle@bluesky-pr.com