Inside the Incredible Potential of Quantum Computing in Drug Development

Drug development takes years — often over a decade. If drugmakers could shorten that timeline, they could save lives. Healthcare leaders are looking to quantum computers as the driver for this change. It has incredible potential in discovery and design.

Why Healthcare Needs Quantum Computing Technology

Today, most drug candidates never make it to production. During clinical studies, an estimated 90% of them fail at the trial or approval stages. A lack of clinical efficacy, unmanageable toxicity, and the absence of commercial demand are some of the main causes. Even among those that are approved, undesirable side effects are incredibly common.

Why is this such an issue? Frankly, development is too time-consuming and costly. On average, researchers spend around 12 years comparing different drugs’ interactions and effects on various diseases to determine the best candidate. Since it takes such a long time and so many fail, it is a complex, costly process.

What if it didn’t have to take so long? What if instead of waiting years, researchers could have results within mere months?

Within the next decade, this computing solution will have a substantial, tangible impact. Analysts expect its cumulative economic impact will surpass $1 trillion by 2035. While many key players are focused on how it will influence cybersecurity, defense, or logistics, its most meaningful impact will materialize in development.

The Science Behind Quantum Computing Drug Development

Quantum computers only recently transitioned from a futuristic, theoretical concept to a concrete, practical solution. However, its technological advancement has been exponential. With each passing year, companies invent bigger, more capable machines. The speculative buzz of excitement surrounding this technology is turning into a roar.

Classical computers function using bits, which are the smallest units of data a computer can process and store. They are represented by a one or zero. Quantum computers are special. They manipulate and measure subatomic particles like electrons and photons to create quantum bits — qubits — which exist as both a one and a zero simultaneously.

Entanglement allows these computers to perform multiple calculations at once. When these subatomic particles share the same state, they can’t be separated — even if they’re light-years apart. Changing one affects the other. Interference is a similar phenomenon. Particles’ wave-like properties help determine probability, enabling professionals to amplify desirable outcomes while suppressing undesirable alternatives.

With characteristics like these, pharmaceutical scientists and drugmakers could accelerate the design phase. Several case studies suggest this machine could shorten the development timeline by multiple years, which translates to considerable cost savings. Patients benefit, too. They would receive safe, effective treatment faster.

How Quantum Computing Contributes to Drug Development

There are three main ways these computers could contribute to the development process.

Accelerates Data Generation

This machine can perform multiple calculations simultaneously, accelerating data generation. Researchers can feed this information into an artificial intelligence system to identify trends, predict worthwhile design avenues, or receive recommendations. This combination of two powerhouse technologies would accelerate drug discovery and development.

Rapidly Solves Complex Problems

These advanced machines can handle problems that are too advanced or computationally intensive for their classical counterparts. For example, they can manage optimization problems. Qubits could simultaneously measure all possible values, identifying the maximum, and minimum thresholds associated with complex functions. This approach would maximize efficiency while minimizing costs.

Authentically Simulates Interactions

With this technology, pharmaceutical scientists can authentically simulate interactions between molecules — a considerably resource-intensive process. This high-precision approach captures the granularity of intermolecular interactions. This way, they can predict the safety, activity, and efficacy of drug molecules more accurately during the design phase.

The Likely Hurdles Facing Quantum Computing Technology

Although quantum computing is incredibly promising, it may take years or even decades for it to catch on in the healthcare sector. Privacy is a major concern. Similar solutions — namely machine learning technology — have come under fire for leveraging genuine patient data.

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) sets the standard for protecting sensitive patient data. Despite its stringent rule set, violations are relatively common. Since the HIPAA Privacy Rule went into effect in 2003, the Office of Civil Rights has handled more than 350,000 complaints and imposed around $142.5 million in penalties. All types of entities, from major medical institutions to smaller providers, have been under investigation.

What happens when machines capable of processing and analyzing decades’ worth of patient data start appearing in hospitals around the country? How do providers secure these systems against cyberattacks from other quantum computers? Violating HIPAA isn’t just expensive — it can lead to reputation damage and foster distrust among patients.

Cost is another hurdle the healthcare sector must address or overcome before it proceeds with widespread implementation. Building and running one of these machines is considerably resource-intensive. They must be housed at extremely low temperatures and with sound dampeners because qubits are incredibly sensitive. Disturbances adversely affect accuracy.

While recent strides in research and development have made these machines more affordable, industry-wide adoption won’t happen overnight. However, this future isn’t as distant as some people assume. Maximillian Zinner, a quantum computer researcher at Witten/Herdecke University, says this technology could become the “holy grail” of drug development in 10 to 15 years. In the grand scheme of things, that’s fast.

The Future of Quantum Pharmaceutical Drug Development

The healthcare sector is slow to change. However, some data points suggest it is already starting to embrace this revolutionary new solution. It is only a matter of time before it becomes a standard part of drugmaking.

In 2022, researchers reviewed the patents published over the last two decades at the United States Patent and Trademark Office and the European Patent Organisation. They found 20,581 granted patents where quantum technology was a core concept captured in the title, abstract, or claims. This rise in pharmaceutical patent filings is telling.

That’s not all. In 2023, IBM and the Cleveland Clinic unveiled the IBM Quantum System One — the first of its kind in the world dedicated solely to healthcare research. While its purpose is to make biomedical discoveries, not develop treatments, it represents a milestone.

Tom Mihaljevic, the chief executive officer and president of the Cleveland Clinic, said this machine could expedite progress toward new solutions, noting it “holds tremendous promise in revolutionizing healthcare.” Mihaljevic optimistically added it could “find new treatments for patients with diseases like cancer, Alzheimer’s and diabetes.”

Can Quantum Technology Revolutionize Drug Development?

It isn’t a question of if, but when. Years ago, things like insertable cardiac monitors and ingestible nanorobots were just concepts. As technology advanced, people went from considering them impossible to impractical. Eventually, they became safe and cost-effective. In time, quantum computers will join them.