The AMR crisis is solvable — but we must act together and fast

Antimicrobial resistance is one of the most serious threats to humanity. This year, a staggering 700,000 people will die from infections that cannot be treated by most or all available antibiotics.

Sadly, this number will continue to grow in coming years, because our arsenal of antibiotics is running out and not enough new antibiotics are being successfully developed. The good news is that we can still act to prevent a doomsday scenario in 2050 where AMR is projected to cause 10 million deaths — exceeding the current deadliness of cancer.

Contrary to cancer and climate change, the solutions are, if not simple, then at least straightforward: Better stewardship of our existing therapies and value-based reimbursement to unleash the vast potential of modern biology to create the next generation of antibiotics.