Perspectives Vol 43 Resilient Taiwan

16 PERSPECTIVES ON BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS | VOL 43 | 2025 decreased need for repeat experimentation. Understanding the impact on cost effectiveness requires more research, in turn requiring greater transparency and access to economic data to uncover the economic benefits of epidemiological effects. Quadrennial systematic review and adjustment of the budget allocations and policies will help assess and improve the effectiveness of the TPHI. Conclusion Science has reached a revolutionary point where human cell therapies can restore function while genetic engineering offers new paths to reducing vulnerability to life-threatening diseases. The collection of personal health data to benefit future generations certainly has altruistic intentions, but questions will always remain. While precision health offers transformative possibilities, it also raises ethical dilemmas about inclusivity, societal values, and the potential for exacerbating inequality. Taiwan has acknowledged that such ethical dilemmas will arise. Continuing to develop relevant MOHW advisory committees that evolve with the technology will provide avenues for considering diverse perspectives. Protection against disease is rather uncontroversial, but as the world inches closer to, for instance, enabling prospective parents to make genetic editing choices after prenatal screening, the tradeoffs between societal benefit and individual choice are increasingly clouded. The balance of public welfare and morality may never be completely satisfactory. The future of technology promises transformative breakthroughs in public health and wellness. Charting the course of such powerful techniques while safeguarding ethical boundaries is a shared responsibility of the government, scientists, and every voting citizen. Taiwan undoubtedly will continue to discover new possibilities for its TPHI. Precision medicine, regenerative medicine, and digital health innovation components will flourish along with growing support for the biotechnology industry. Continued expansion of the number and diversity of participants in the biobank will ensure that the research is authentic and fully representative of Taiwan. Providing strong security measures and detailed economic analysis can protect privacy and clarify the benefits of the initiative. Implementation of the precision health initiative creates a multitude of possibilities for disease prevention and would position Taiwan as a world leader in the integration of technology into public health. References Alliance for Regenerative Medicine. (2020). New report demonstrates potential for cell and gene therapies to provide cost savings. Anderlik, M. (2003). Commercial biobanks and genetic research: Ethical and legal issues. American Journal of Pharmacogenomics, 3, 203–215. doi:10.2165/00129785200303030-00006 Borman, S. (2009). A science academy like no other. Chemical and Engineering News. Bagcchi, S. (2022, February 23). Biobanking: New technique could revolutionize universal health. World Economic Forum. Chalmers, D., Nicol, D., Kaye, J., Bell, J., Campbell, A. V., Ho, C. W. L., … Whitton, T. (2016). Has the biobank bubble burst? Withstanding the challenges for sustainable biobanking in the digital era. BMC Medical Ethics, 17, 39. doi:10.1186/ s12910-016-0124-2 Chen, C., Chen, T., Feng, Y. A., Yu, M., Lin, S., Longchamps, R. J., … Lin, Y. (2023). Analysis across Taiwan Biobank, Biobank Japan, and UK Biobank identifies hundreds of novel loci for 36 quantitative traits. Cell Genomics, 3, 100436. doi:10.1016/j.xgen.2023.100436 Chen, K., Yu, H., Chen, W., Lin, W., Lee, Y., Chen, H., … Lu, H. H. (2020a). Diagnosis of common pulmonary diseases in children by X-ray images and deep learning. Scientific Reports, 10, 17374. doi:10.1038/s41598-020-73831-5 Chen, S. (2017). WHO must include Taiwan to be prepared for an influenza pandemic. Taipei Economic and Cultural Office. Chen,T.,Lai,P.,Kuo,C.,Day,C.H.,Chen,R.,Ho,T.,…Huang, C. (2020b). Resveratrol enhances therapeutic effect on pancreatic regeneration in diabetes mellitus rats receiving autologous transplantation of adipose-derived stem cells. Chinese Journal of Physiology, 63, 122–127. doi:10.4103/ CJP.CJP_3_20 Chen, W. C., & Huang, A. S. (2024). COVID-19 public health surveillance and response in Taiwan: From containment to mitigation. Journal of the Formosan Medical Association, 123, S17–S26. doi:10.1016/j. jfma.2023.08.016 Chen, Y., & Cohen, J. A. (2020). Why does the WHO exclude Taiwan? Council on Foreign Relations. https://www.cfr.org/in-brief/why-does-who-exclude- taiwan Feng, Y. A., Chen, C., Chen, T., Kuo, P., Hsu, Y., Yang, H., … Lin, Y. (2022). Taiwan Biobank: A rich biomedical research database of the Taiwanese population. Cell Genomics, 2, 100197. doi:10.1016/j.xgen.2022.100197 Harmon, S. H. E., Yen, S., & Tang, S. (2018). Biobank governance: The cautionary tale of Taiwan biobank. SCRIPTed, 15, 103–129. doi:10.2966/scrip.150118.103 Henderson, R. H., French, D., Stewart, E., Smart, D., Idica, A., Redmond, S., … Lawler, M. (2023). Delivering the precision oncology paradigm: Reduced R&D costs and greater return on investment through a companion diagnostic informed precision oncology medicines approach. Journal of Pharmaceutical Policy and Practice, 16, 84. doi:10.1186/s40545-023-00590-9

RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTA0OTQ5OA==