It takes over 12 years and on average costs over €1 billion to do all the research and development necessary before a new medicine is available for patients to use. Medicines development is a high risk venture. The majority of substances (around 98%) being developed do not make it to the market as new medicines. This is mostly because when you look at the benefits and risks (negative side effects) found during development, they do not compare well with medicines that are already available to patients.
The steps involved in developing a new medicine are described below.