Written and published by Biogerontology Research Foundation staff in collaboration with Novartis Pharma AG, Department of Developmental and Molecular Pathways, Novartis Institute for Biomedical Research.
Classifying aging as a disease in the context of ICD-11. Front Genet. 2015 Nov 4;6:326.
Zhavoronkov A(1), Bhullar B(2).
(1) The Biogerontology Research Foundation , Oxford, UK ; Insilico Medicine Inc , Baltimore, MD, USA.
(2) Novartis Pharma AG, Department of Developmental and Molecular Pathways, Novartis Institute for Biomedical Research , Basel, Switzerland.
Abstract: Aging is a complex continuous multifactorial process leading to loss of function and crystalizing into the many age-related diseases. Here, we explore the arguments for classifying aging as a disease in the context of the upcoming World Health Organization's 11th International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD-11), expected to be finalized in 2018. We hypothesize that classifying aging as a disease with a "non-garbage" set of codes will result in new approaches and business models for addressing aging as a treatable condition, which will lead to both economic and healthcare benefits for all stakeholders. Actionable classification of aging as a disease may lead to more efficient allocation of resources by enabling funding bodies and other stakeholders to use quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) and healthy-years equivalent (HYE) as metrics when evaluating both research and clinical programs. We propose forming a Task Force to interface the WHO in order to develop a multidisciplinary framework for classifying aging as a disease with multiple disease codes facilitating for therapeutic interventions and preventative strategies.
