The World Health Organization reports that more than 600 million people suffer from lower back pain globally, making it the leading cause of disability worldwide.

Chronic lower back pain – where the pain persists for more than 3 months – develops in between 5 and 10% of all lower back pain cases, with life-altering impacts for patients.

And that’s where today’s guest, Steve Ruston, of Persica Pharmaceuticals comes in. Persica is developing a groundbreaking and transformative treatment for chronic Low Back Pain. Persica is targeting the cause of chronic lower back pain: the underlying bacterial infection. Unlike conventional approaches that manage symptoms, Persica’s drug enables the infection to clear, reducing inflammation, pain and disability at the source.

1:20 Introducing Steve Ruston of Persica Pharmaceuticals

3:53 Lessons learnt from developing blockbuster drugs

6:35 Global experiences in the biopharma industry

8:32 Persica Pharmaceuticals and its mission

10:26 Collaborations with a network of partners

11:48 A non-opioid approach to addressing lower back pain

13:35 Treating the cause, not the symptoms

15:05 How Persica’s treatment work

18:59 Practical impacts of Persica’s treatment

21:07 Identifying patients for cLBP treatment

23:24 How Persica is changing the treatment landscape

28:10 Regulatory hurdles to overcome

34:37 Securing funding for Persica’s innovation

36:16 The future of treating pain

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To dive deeper into the topic:

Persica Pharmaceuticals is treating the cause of chronic lower back pain, not just the symptoms