The economic value of targeting aging
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Economic simulation model using secondary data (level 5 by design analogy, not clinical CEBM)
OpenAlex W3180012192 · doi:10.1038/s43587-021-00080-0
What was done
The authors analyzed existing data using an economic framework to estimate and compare the monetary value of compressing morbidity, extending life expectancy, targeting biological aging, and eradicating specific individual diseases.
What was found
Compressing morbidity to improve health was estimated to be more valuable than further extensions in life expectancy alone, and targeting aging offered potentially larger economic gains than eradicating individual diseases. In the model, a slowdown in aging that increased life expectancy by 1 year was worth US$38 trillion, and a 10-year increase was worth US$367 trillion. Initial improvements in how humans age increased the value of subsequent improvements.
Why it matters
This study provides an economic rationale for geroscience research, framing interventions that slow systemic aging as potentially more valuable than disease-specific medical breakthroughs.
Limits
As an economic modeling study, results depend entirely on theoretical valuation frameworks and model assumptions rather than empirical interventional data. The abstract does not report the specific data sources, sample sizes, baseline populations, discount rates, or confidence intervals.
Cited by
- context A study from the London School of Business, Harvard, and Oxford found that adding one year of healthy lifespan globally is worth $38 trillion to the global economy.