How rare disease drugs has become mandatory for modern health systems nowadays?

 There are six to seven thousand to eight thousand rare diseases presently affecting a total patient population of about 350 million worldwide. Large pharmaceutical companies have set their eyes on creating orphan drugs for treating such rare diseases. There are more than 7 thousand known rare diseases that affect an average global patient population. Of these, AIDS is the most common disease, accounting for more than a million deaths annually

However, rare disease drugs discovery can be an expensive affair because the companies involved in its discovery processes have to invest huge amounts in research and production of such medicines. The costs of producing these medicines can be quite high. Production can take up to several years, making it extremely expensive. Moreover, because of their rarity, drugs which have no known uses in humans can be very expensive to produce.

The difficulty that faced while looking for rare disease drugs during the initial stages of their development can be overcome with the help of modern techniques.

Biotechnology has made possible the introduction of useful genes into plants and animals so that they can be used as medicines. The introduction of such genetically engineered crops can be a beneficial route to generate affordable and efficient drugs. Some of the companies are focusing more on using genetically modified plants that can be useful in producing rare disease drugs against common as well as serious diseases like cancer and HIV.

The use of antineoplastic agents in cancer treatment has helped to reduce this number, but there are still millions of people who contract AIDS and other life threatening diseases that refuse to succumb to medical treatments. The use of such treatments can, at times, have disastrous effects on the patient's overall health and well-being. Drug resistance has also developed within certain strains of the infection, making them more difficult to treat with medicine.