Researchers Call for Rigorous Classifications of Aging to Assist Development of Therapies to Treat Aging
The first rejuvenation therapies exist, in the form of senolytic drugs that selectively destroy senescent cells, but no regulatory bodies yet recognize aging as a legitimate target for therapy. A variety of efforts are underway to change this state of affairs, many of which focus on the contents of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) maintained by the World Health Organization (WHO), which is presently in the process of revision to ICD-11. Incorporating aging into the ICD in a rigorous way would lead, in time, to medical service providers and regulatory bodies worldwide adopting the concept of aging as a condition that can be treated.
Beyond updating the ICD to include aging, other initiatives include the TAME metformin trial, which is an attempt to get the FDA to agree upon trial endpoints that are close enough to aging for practical purposes. Other factions, and I fall into this camp, are of the opinion that real progress will emerge from battles with the regulators over widespread off-label use of cheap rejuvenation therapies that are approved for other conditions, with senolytic treatments such as the dasatinib and quercetin combination leading the way there.
An international team of researchers has put forward a call to action to governments, the WHO, and the scientific and medical communities to come together and develop classifications and staging systems utilizing the framework as the basis for diagnosing and treating age-related diseases, including directly treating all aging tissues and organs. Age-related diseases without adequate diagnostic criteria and severity staging limit the ability for prevention or treatment and the ability to develop new drugs and interventions. Ultimately, this impacts the quality of life for older members of society.
Currently the classification and severity staging of age-related diseases is limited because it is inconsistent, incomplete, and non-systematic. Some types of disease that can be found in many organs, such as intrinsic organ aging, or organ atrophy or wasting, are classified in one organ but not others. Experts, scientists, and physicians have created a position statement which lays out a framework for properly and comprehensively classifying and staging the severity of age-related diseases. Importantly the statement includes aging at the tissue and organ level as well as organ atrophy, pathologic remodelling and calcification, and age-related systemic and metabolic diseases.
While aging is classified as a condition within the WHO International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) in relation to intrinsic skin aging and photoaging, the framework proposes the classification of aging as conditions in all organs, along with the comprehensive classification of all aging-related diseases and syndromes. As part of this work, initial classification submissions related to age-related diseases in line with the framework have already been submitted to the latest version of WHO ICD-11.