Dr. Diego Wyszynski received his medical degree from the University of Buenos Aires and masters and PhD degrees in Epidemiology from Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health. His post-doctoral work was at the National Institutes of Health, followed by a faculty appointment at Boston University Schools of Medicines and of Public Health. In 2006, he joined the giant biotech Amgen and, since then, has been at positions of increasing responsibility at various small and large pharmaceutical companies. In 2014, Dr. Wyszynski founded Pregistry to produce and disseminate information about the safety of medications and vaccines when used during pregnancy and lactation.
Where did you grow up? How did your upbringing influence your career?
I was born and raised in Buenos Aires, Argentina. My parents were both doctors who supported my interest in studying medicine with the ultimate goal to improve the lives of pregnant women and children. Early on, I was attracted by the nascent field of genetic epidemiology, which consists of understanding the interplay between genes and environment on human traits and diseases. In graduate school, I was fortunate to do research on the causes of cleft lip and palate. That led me to the wider field of birth defects, to study their origins and treatments. Since the cause of the vast majority of birth defects remains elusive, I began to investigate potential risk factors. Maternal diseases and the medications to treat them entered my radar and that is what I have been working on for almost two decades. Pregistry includes over 40 pregnancy specialists, covering a range of clinical, preclinical, safety, regulatory, marketing, and IT needs, and the focus is on ensuring that both mother and baby are healthy and safe and that prescribers have the information needed to be able to explain the potential benefits and risks of medications during pregnancy and lactation.
What do you see as the biggest challenge in your market?
Of the approximately 80 million pregnant women in the world, about 50-75% will take at least one prescription medication during pregnancy, of which less than 10% have been studied in pregnant women. Since about half of the pregnancies are unplanned, many of these women will be using unstudied medications during the first trimester of gestation, when most of the vital organs are developing. This should be of great concern to all of us. Fortunately, regulatory agencies worldwide are increasingly requiring pharmaceutical companies to conduct pregnancy exposure studies. But this is hard work. It relies on the proactive identification and follow-up of exposed pregnancies, the collection and evaluation of exposures, a careful medical assessment of outcomes, and the use of a variety of available reference populations to quickly identify potential safety signals.
How do you continue to educate yourself?
Medicine in the 21st century requires us to be permanently abreast of new scientific discoveries and tools to implement them for the improvement of public health. Digital health, wearable technology, and artificial intelligence are only a part of what we do now but I believe they will be almost the totality of what we will do in the future. Therefore, I read a lot and discuss these and related topics with my fellow health entrepreneurs and pharmaceutical colleagues. But, how I learn the most, is by interacting with pregnant and nursing women. Each pregnancy and every baby are different, and their experiences are usually a treasure of information.
What role do partnerships and relationships play in your career?
It’s impossible to run a successful health start-up without them. A partnership in our field is not just an interaction with a regulatory agency or a professional organization. Naturally, we need them as much as they need us. But, if we conduct a pregnancy exposure registry or a pregnancy surveillance program, we need to interact with the local health agency, the pharmaceutical sponsor, professional societies, grassroots organizations, and with many, many pregnant women.
True or false? Hard work solves almost anything. Tell us why you feel this way.
There is an element of truth in that. However, there are other equally important qualities that are necessary for us to solve the problem pregnant women face each time they have to decide whether or not to take a medication. For example, we need to build communities and bridges before we try to ask questions. If pregnant women do not know who we are or do not feel safe sharing their information with us, no matter how much work you do, you will not get the information you need. That’s why, for the last six years, we have worked extensively to develop and offer a large amount of information and tools free of charge, including expert reports on thousands of medications, exposures, and medical conditions. This symbiotic relationship works to the advantage of both parties, and we are able to help and learn from each other.
What achievement are you most proud of?
We currently maintain a community of approximately 600,000 pregnant and nursing women. And that number is organically increasing rapidly on a daily basis. I feel most proud when moms tell us that they used our resources and information during an entire pregnancy and now, some time later, they are coming back to use those resources because they are pregnant again.
What’s next in your career?
I will continue leading Pregistry through the new challenges it faces. In a few months we will launch the Pregistry app, we will initiate the collection of data with the Universal Pregnancy Registry, and we will be actively looking for pharmaceutical companies that need our support.
What advice do you have for our readers?
If you are trying to start a new business, go out and talk to potential customers. See how they react to your idea and ask them for tips. There needs to be market fit for a business to succeed. Many people have ideas for great products that no one wants to buy. Make sure you do that early on. Also, talk to colleagues, friends, and family and to anybody else who is willing to listen. The more you talk, the more feedback and ideas you will get. Don’t worry about someone stealing your secret. Despite what you may think, it is unlikely that anyone is going to take your concept and run with it!
Is it possible for our readers to hire you or work with your team?
Certainly. If your organization needs information from pregnant or nursing women, either through a study or a survey, feel free to get in touch with us. You can find us on https://www.pregistry.com and, by email at [email protected].