Cardiotoxicity is a major reason for drug failure and withdrawal
Drug-induced cardiotoxicity remains one of the most common reasons drug development is halted or a drug is withdrawn from the market. During 2011 and 2012, for example, around 28% of potential therapeutics were abandoned during their clinical trials because of safety concerns with cardiovascular issues being the most prevalent cause (1). Post-marketing analysis also shows how cardiotoxicity has resulted in large numbers of drugs being withdrawn from the market following initial approval (2).
With drug development taking years with associated costs reaching into the billions, reducing these rates of attrition is essential. Traditional animals or hERG-overexpression models may slow or miss the cardiotoxic events. When screening a compound for cardiotoxicity, you need a model that is rapid, reliable, and relevant to human physiology.