A decade plus of translation: what do we understand?

It is expected that life expectancy will progressively increase as it has in the last decades [1]. As a consequence, the prevalence of chronic diseases, which affect predominantly the elderly, is expected to grow [2]. This will result in a formidable challenge for the health care system as chronic conditions last for a long time and require, as a consequence, prolonged spending with marginal benefit for the patient. Although the gross domestic product of a given Country is directly correlated with prolonged life expectancy [3] the relationship plateaus at the upper end of GDP values. Thus, and it is inaccurate to assume that the more it is spent in Health the better the results. A recent analysis from the United States of America Congressional Budget Office in fact suggested an inverse relationship between spending for treatment and a composite measure of quality of care [4]. Yet, the United States spending for health care continues to expand and it is projected to reach the paradoxical figure of almost 100% of the gross domestic product by the end of the this century. It could be argued that better patient selection and enhancement of treatment effectiveness may decrease the costs. Thus, it is not only in the patient interest but in the interest of the health care provider to spend a meager proportion of the astronomic health care spending in research and development relevant to these goals: this is one of the fundamental values of translational sciences.It has been suggested that translational sciences are just a "fad"; a passing spree of introspection toward an utopist goal. In reality, translational sciences reflects quite specific needs that will stay relevant (independently of the term used) till they will be met. The need for translational sciences resides in 1) the need to find cost/effective solutions to the treatment of chronic diseases which in turn represent 2/3 of heath care spending in most countries; 2) the high throughput of modern biotechnology expo