Patient preferences in the medical product lifecycle

Taking into consideration the patient voice has not only become increasingly important for the companies that develop new medical products, but also for the authorities that assess, regulate and decide which medical products are effective, safe, well tolerated and cost-effective. Patient preference studies can complement patient narratives and qualitative insights in a quantitative manner and provide understanding of the trade-offs patients are willing to make. However, what is currently missing is a shared understanding among key stakeholders (industry, regulatory authorities, health technology assessment bodies, reimbursement agencies, clinicians and patient organisations) about when and how to consider patient preferences in the medical product lifecycle. This commentary captures important opinions on patient preferences and the medical product lifecycle that were discussed in the rare opportunity to gather key opinion leaders from a wide range of perspectives that was offered by the symposium on “Patient preferences in the medical product lifecycle” held in Basel, Switzerland in July 2019. The symposium was jointly organised by the International Academy of Health Preference Research (IAHPR) and the Innovative Medicine Initiative research project ‘Patient Preferences in Benefit and Risk Assessments during the Treatment Life Cycle’ (PREFER).