Today's Edition
Khaled Al Khawaldeh (ABU DHABI)
Conventional healthcare has followed a simple reactive model: When you get sick, you go to a medical centre and get treatment. However, longevity clinics — a rising trend in the industry — promise to revolutionise the way people interact with their health, encouraging them to be “more present” in their lives.
Longevity medicine is an emerging field that aims to extend the healthy human lifespan through a proactive, science-based approach. As Dr. Nicole Sirotin, CEO of the Institute for Healthier Living Abu Dhabi (IHLAD), told Aletihad, medical centres aim to cure a patient’s sickness, but longevity clinics seek to keep one healthy over time.
“The current system is based on you getting sick and someone treating you, right? So, part of our role in that is to help build the proactive system where we can live in the population, understand someone's risk and really use that to help understand the biology of ageing,” she said on the sidelines of Abu Dhabi Global Health Week on Tuesday.
The rise of longevity medicine was evident at the ongoing Abu Dhabi Global Health Week, where the UAE launched a new Health, Endurance, Longevity, and Medicine (HELM) cluster.
The cluster — which aims to serve as a platform for the research and development of biotechnology and new-age health solutions — will see Abu Dhabi take a leading role in the growing longevity medicine industry.
The announcement comes as the country sees the emergence of longevity centres, with private companies rushing to establish a footing in the field. This includes pharmaceutical giants like Lilly, which is looking for collaborations with the government to find long-term solutions to reduce obesity.
“We are shifting the paradigm from reactive to proactive care — enabling earlier interventions, health system resilience, and better outcomes across the region, that would benefit patients,” Tony Terzis, Associate VP for Lilly Medical META, told Aletihad at the Abu Dhabi Global Health Week.
Building a Framework
However, there has been some doubt raised over the effectiveness of many ‘longevity treatments’ in the market. A recent survey conducted by Dubai-based Detki Family Clinic and Molodost Clinic found that only 10% of clinics claiming to provide longevity therapies were backed by science.
As part of her work at IHLAD, Dr. Sirotin has been leading the charge to create a framework that would provide the basic structure around longevity care and ensure that a reputable and science-backed industry flourishes in the UAE.
Working in tandem with the UAE authorities, IHLAD has published a foundational document that aims to regulate and standardise the industry.
“What we're aiming to build is a structure that ensures there's someone helping you stay healthy, and that someone has knowledge and experience that has been accredited by somebody,” she said.
Dr. Sirotin said longevity medicine was heavily reliant on gathering data points to access an individual’s ageing process.
“So, the rate you're ageing is different from the rate that I am, and within your body, the rate your skin is ageing, versus your heart versus your brain, those are all different. So, if I — as a physician — am going to apply treatment, I need to know those things, so I know where to start.”
She said programmes like the Emirati Genome Project and investment in state-of-the-art measurement devices ensured that Abu Dhabi would lead in individualised longevity care.
