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. 2023 Mar 2;12(3):502.
doi: 10.3390/antibiotics12030502.

Managing Patient and Clinician Expectations of Phage Therapy in the United Kingdom

Joshua D Jones  1   2 , Helen J Stacey  3 , Arlene Brailey  4 , Mehrunisha Suleman  5 , Ross J Langley  6   7
Affiliations

Managing Patient and Clinician Expectations of Phage Therapy in the United Kingdom

Joshua D Jones et al. Antibiotics (Basel). .

Abstract

Bacteriophage (phage) therapy is a promising alternative antimicrobial approach which has the potential to transform the way we treat bacterial infections. Phage therapy is currently being used on a compassionate basis in multiple countries. Therefore, if a patient has an antibiotic refractory infection, they may expect their clinician to consider and access phage therapy with the hope of improvement. The expectations of clinicians may be similar and may also include expectations around data collection. However, there are multiple biological and practical barriers to fulfilling patient and clinician expectations. While it is possible to access phage therapy, the path to acquisition is not straightforward and expectations therefore need to be managed appropriately to avoid raising false hope and undermining confidence in phage therapy. Phage scientists have an important contribution to make in educating clinicians and the broader public about phage therapy. However, it is clinicians that are responsible for managing the expectations of their patients and this relies on clear communication about the barriers and limitations.

Keywords: United Kingdom; bacteriophage; ethics; expectation; patient; phage therapy.

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Conflict of interest statement

J.D.J. has been awarded a grant from the Tayside Health Fund to support access to phage therapy. J.D.J. is also the Director of UK Phage Therapy, a not-for-profit company. The remaining authors declare no competing interests.

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