Ep. 1: Big Science, with NIH’s Francis Collins

Francis Collins

Director, National Institutes of Health

“We have on our own campus the vaccine research center that is working 24/7 to accelerate the progress with as many different vaccines as possible, but particularly one that is already in phase one trials.”

Francis Collins was born for big science. After a successful 13-year effort leading 2,400 scientists in six countries to crack the human DNA instruction book, the one-time leader of the Human Genome Project now is now directing the largest biomedical research agency in the world to tackle COVID-19.

He tells Mike that massive, coordinated networks of clinical trials will be essential to finding a cure, and should include every patient who has tested positive for the virus. Once a highly promising vaccine is found, Dr. Collins would accelerate production so that there’s enough waiting to be delivered instantly upon approval from the FDA.

The Human Genome Project ushered in a new era of modern medicine, leading to countless effective treatments and therapies. Today, Francis Collins’ teams just need to find one more.