UMKC professor finds drug breakthrough

By: Kurt Kloeblen, Staff writer

Richard Derman, associate dean for clinical research and women’s health, teaches University of Missouri-Kansas City medical students at the Research Medical Center campus.

He sits in a modest office with hardly any awards or certificates on the wall, and he is an unassuming man for a doctor who has accomplished more than most in his profession.

Derman’s most important work happened in India, where he led research that investigated reducing post-birth-related bleeding and death.

Derman and his team learned the number of deaths from postpartum hemorrhage is high. They used a drug called misoprostol, which had an original use for stopping bleeding ulcers.

The results of the research has the potential to save thousands of lives per year in India and some third-world countries. Derman estimates, at minimum, the drug could save around 65,000 lives per year, with the potential to save between 130,000 to 500,000 women worldwide per year. 

Derman said he is aware of the significance of his research.

“There’s no doubt I think about the outcomes,” Derman said. “It’s so hard to go and explain the potential of this drug, because it is so vast.”

Derman said women giving birth in rural settings are women who will most benefit from misoprostol.

“These women usually do not have the type of care they need,” Derman said. “If there is a midwife they may have very limited or no training at all.”

Derman and his team received $2.5 million to conduct its research from the Global Network for Women’s and Children’s Health Research. The group works under the National Institute for Health and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Derman said misoprostol can be effective in developing countries because it costs only a few cents per pill to produce.

“There are other ways to stop bleeding, but they simply don’t have access to them or can’t afford them,” Derman said. “This costs just a few cents and can be accessed throughout the world.”

Derman has become known as one of the country’s leading experts on women’s health and is recognized in the global women’s health community. He is director of the National Center of Excellence in Women’s Health, part of the WHO Task Force on Postpartum Hemorrhage and is on the Liaison Committee for the Establishment of a School of Public Health in India.

Derman also is a reviewer for medical journal The Lancet, on the editorial board of Journal of Women’s Health and associate editor of the International Journal of Fertility and Menopausal Studies.

Derman said he appreciates the appointments and awards, but emphasizes his real joy comes from completing research that can save lives and improve quality of life.

“All the awards are very humbling,” Derman said. “But as a research physician, we don’t get into this to make it rich. For us it is hitting on that research that works. So many times we test drugs and the outcomes are not what we aim for. But when you have results like this, it really makes the work worthwhile.”

Derman said he has regular meetings with the World Health Organization and has met with other countries to discuss using misoprostol. He said getting the drug approved for use is not always an easy process.

“It’s never that easy,” Derman said. “A lot of the ministries of health are political organizations so there are a lot of factors that go into making their decisions. We can try and show the value, but many times politics plays a bigger role.”

The drug has received approval in Nigeria and Ethiopia. Derman said since drug companies have learned of the research, production of the drug has increased all over the globe.

“Pharmaceutical companies have seen the potential to make a profit if they are able to mass produce,” Derman said.

Although he has taught and worked in different parts of the country, Derman said he is happy at UMKC and in Kansas City, where he lives with his wife.

“I’m very happy to be at UMKC,” Derman said. “Kansas City has been very good to me, and I think that this is a great place for faculty and students to go into medicine.”

Contact Kurt Kloeblen at (913) 385-6087 or kkloeblen@sunpublications.com