Shaking the cup for pain

FDA officials and academic collaborators have outlined a research strategy they hope will lead to more effective therapies for chronic pain, a major unmet medical need. Now all they need is money.

When FDA announced the formation of a new public-private partnership called Analgesic Clinical Trials Innovation, Opportunities, and Networks (ACTION) in November 2010, it was able to award a one-year, $1 million contract to the University of Rochester to conduct initial research and help create infrastructure for the partnership...