orphan drug

drug (drug)

1. a chemical substance that affects the processes of the mind or body.

2. any chemical compound used in the diagnosis, treatment, or prevention of disease or other abnormal condition.

3. a substance used recreationally for its effects on the central nervous system, such as a narcotic.

4. to administer a drug to.

---

designer drug  a new drug of abuse similar in action to an older abused drug and usually created by making a small chemical modification in the older one.

mind-altering drug  one that produces an altered state of consciousness.

nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug  (NSAID) any of a large, chemically heterogeneous group of drugs that inhibit the enzyme cyclooxygenase, resulting in decreased synthesis of prostaglandin and thromboxane precursors; they have analgesic, antipyretic, and antiinflammatory actions.

orphan drug  one that has limited commercial appeal because of the rarity of the condition it is used to treat.

psychoactive drug , psychotropic drug see under substance.

---

orphan drug

n.

Any of various drugs or biologicals that may be useful in treating disease but are not considered to be commercially viable.

---

Orphan drug

A term for a drug that treats a rare disease, defined by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as one that affects fewer than 200,000 Americans. The FDA has an Office of Orphan Products Development (OOPD), which offers grants to researchers to develop these products.

Mentioned in: Down Syndrome, Huntington Disease, Polycythemia Vera, Severe Combined Immunodeficiency

---

orphan drug

[ôr′fən]

Etymology: Gk, orphanos, without parents; ME, drogge

a term that generally refers to drugs needed to treat rare diseases but can encompass any pharmaceutic product available to physicians and patients in countries other than the United States that has not been "adopted" by a domestic pharmaceutic manufacturer or distributor. An orphan drug may not be available in the United States because total sales would not justify the expense of research and development or because the medication may be a natural substance that cannot be effectively protected by patent laws against competition from a similar form of the product. The U.S. Orphan Drug Act of 1983 offers federal financial incentives to commercial and nonprofit organizations to develop and market drugs previously unavailable in the United States for rare diseases affecting fewer than 200,000 people. The FDA assists in the process with its office of Orphan Product Development.