Despite rapid advances in medical technology, cancer, dementia, Parkinson's disease, diabetes, and hypertension remain challenges to overcome in an aging society.
Moreover, developing a single global new drug requires an average of more than 10 years and enormous investment costs of over KRW 1 trillion. Despite this, the success rate is extremely low.
To overcome this situation, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups has recently moved to strengthen new drug development competitiveness by creating an ecosystem in which large corporations can commercialize candidate substances developed by domestic startup ventures. The ministry also plans to further strengthen support for early-stage startups in the pre-IND candidate discovery phase.
An official from the Korea Institute of Toxicology, which is promoting this project, stated, "The rewards for success in new drug development are enormous, but the possibility of failure is very high, so the key is identifying and supporting pre-startup candidates with technological capabilities," adding, "Prioritized support is needed for pre-candidate and pre-clinical R&D."
RudaCure has gained attention for its independently developed dry eye disease treatment candidate substance. The company is working toward clinical advancement in Korea and abroad, with a focus on developing treatments for intractable sensory disorders such as dry eye disease and pain.