January 2007
Nanomedicine is an area of nanotechnology which raises high expectations with regard to its potentials in diagnostics, drug development and delivery, imaging and other health- related applications. It is a major research sector covered by the EU Research and Development Programme.
Under the 6th EU Framework Programme for research (FP6) the Commission has invested more than €1.36 Billion in nanotechnology (550 projects financed) and under the 7th Framework Programme for research (FP7) some €3.5 billion should be allocated to this research sector.
The first FP7 call for proposals on nanotechnology has been launched and it has been estimated that €300-400 million could be allocated to nanotechnology in 2007. Around €100 million per year is expected to be allocated to nanomedicine project proposals.
Like other research sectors, however, this new area of nanotechnology needs a proper analysis of its ethical implications.
The Opinion focuses on ethics issues arising from nanomedicine but also discusses a number of problems raised by nanotechnology insofar as they concern primarily health-related issues.
The EGE underlines the vital importance of addressing concern for safety with respect to nanomedical developments (and, in fact, nanotechnology in general) and therefore advocates the need to establish measures to verify the safety of nanomedical products and to ensure that nanomedical devices are properly assessed with regard to public health.