A wide-ranging look at an industry that is central to the health and welfare of humanity, this pioneering work documents how science has provided an astonishing array of medicines for coping with human ailments over the last 150 years. Pharmaceutical Innovation covers the history of the pharmaceutical industry and its many contributions to human health. Underpinning the volume is an outline of the five generations of medicine, from the 1820s to present day. The volume also addresses industry leaders, economic influences, and the development of individual products. These factors have particular significance for the pharmaceutical industry today. This book's account of research and development in a key industry makes Pharmaceutical Innovation required reading for policy makers, economists, corporate executives, research managers, and historians of science, technology, and medicine.