Question

A new treatment is discovered that improves survival probability of a disease from 85 percent to 95 percent. Discuss the different ways a researcher might look at these results versus the way that the marketing department might discuss them. What is the difference in the way you would view a new treatment that improves survival probability by the same absolute magnitude from 5 percent to 15 percent?

Answer 1

A researcher will approach each findings with caution and cross check it with other similar data or run more tests to be sure of the results. A researcher will try to find all the contributing factors to this 10 percentage point improvement in survival probability and also make observations of any potential side-effects after the recovery of such new cases. Each step in a research work is well documented. A Marketer, on the other hand, see this 10 percentage point improvement as a potential sales pitch and also sees potential future increase in sales as a result of such findings. A marketer is also interested if this increase in survival rate include new age group or the existing ones. By inquiring this, he is segmenting the market based on age or may be gender to target them accordingly. As a common person, I would welcome such a move in case the topic under consideration is a life threatening one and there is an urgent need for a breakthrough.