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Editorial

Nature Reviews Drug Discovery 6, 97 (1 February 2007) | doi:10.1038/nrd2259

Same old story?

The number of novel drugs that received approval by the US FDA in 2006 was close to an all-time low, with just 18 new molecular entities and 4 new biologic license applications being approved. However, looking beyond the gloomy data on drug approvals reveals some initial signs that the situation might finally begin to improve in coming years.