Innovative Medicines Initiative

Fibrodyplasia ossificans progressiva (FOP) is a rare disease where muscle and tissue slowly turn to bone. IMI’s STOPFOP project is testing if the cancer drug saracatinib could treat the disease.

From setting standards for genetic newborn screening to helping pharma create a shared platform to treat thousands of rare diseases, IMI is ready to help drive the science forward.

IMI’s EHDEN project dramatically demonstrated the power of using clinical data in research by replicating, during a five-day ‘study-a-thon’, the results of a systematic review covering 20 years of research, and a multi-year clinical trial.

Vaccines could offer hope - but who to vaccinate, and against what, has no clear answer yet. Read IMI Executive Director Dr Pierre Meulien’s perspective on what is needed to tackle antimicrobial resistance.

Ruling out Ebola lookalikes can mean the difference between containment and catastrophe. IMI backed three bedside Ebola detection tests that work quickly with minimal equipment or training.

During the 2014-16 Ebola outbreak in western Africa, public health expert Nicolas Meda of Burkina Faso played a key role in his country’s response to the epidemic. In an interview, he sets out the lessons learnt from the experience.

Advanced therapies feature in new Innovative Medicines Initiative Calls for proposals, along with topics on artificial intelligence; the need for reliable, relevant health information; and ways of incorporating patients’ perspectives into healthcare and cancer clinical trials.

IMI has involved patients in its projects and activities since the beginning. Now, IMI is creating a pool of patient experts to strengthen the role and voice of patients in IMI activities at strategic and operational levels.

Vaccines are an effective public health measure, yet public distrust in immunisation is resulting in outbreaks of preventable diseases. IMI’s ADVANCE project worked to create an open system for monitoring vaccine coverage, benefits and risks in Europe.

IMI's PRO-active project has developed patient-centred tools and approaches to help people with chronic obstructive respiratory disease (COPD) get more personalised treatments - a means to boost their activity levels, health and well-being.