Science at Warp Speed: Medical Research, Publication, and Translation During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a rapid growth in research focused on developing vaccines and therapies. In this context, the need for speed is taken for granted, and the scientific process has adapted to accommodate this. On the surface, attempts to speed up the research enterprise appear to be a good thing. It is, however, important to consider what, if anything, might be lost when biomedical innovation is sped up. In this article we use the case of a study recently retracted from the Lancet to illustrate the potential risks and harms associated with speeding up science. We then argue that, with appropriate governance mechanisms in place (and adequately resourced), it should be quite possible to both speed up science and remain attentive to scientific quality and integrity. Keywords COVID-19. Pandemic. Research quality. Research governance. Research integrity. Biomedical publication The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the world in profound ways and led to significant shifts in our social, political, economic, and scientific priorities. Among these has been a major shift in both public and private research funding towards COVID-19-related projects, with the aim of mapping the pandemic and its effects and developing vaccines and therapies (London and Kimmelman 2020). In this context, the need for speed is taken for granted, and the scientific process has adapted to accommodate this. Rather than going through the usual research-dissemination-translation pathway, existing drugs are being "repurposed," usual preclinical testing regimes are being bypassed or shortened, study sizes are being reduced, and timeconsuming randomized controlled trials are being replaced or supplemented with observational studies. The results of research are already being reported mere months after the epidemic's onset-often prior to formal peer review or after so-called "rapid" review. And regulators are "fast tracking" their review of potentially promising drugs and vaccines (

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