Surveys on phage therapy: Current understanding and practical implications

With the ongoing progress of phage therapy, an increasing number of researchers globally undertake surveys-particularly among physicians-to assess awareness, knowledge, and willingness to incorporate phage treatment into routine clinical practice. Recent surveys conducted in Australia, Korea, Poland, the United Kingdom, the United States, as well as two international surveys have revealed a consistent and clear message that awareness of phage therapy is growing and that the clinical urgency to include it as a means of combatting antibiotic resistance is real. At the same time, the scientific and medical community faces well-known obstacles, and progress in resolving them has been relatively slow. Regulatory uncertainties, the limited number of centers conducting phage therapy, and limited support, especially from the pharmaceutical industry, are just a few examples. Another important ambiguity is that robust evidence from randomized clinical trials remains limited. In this review article, we try to solve the puzzle of whether awareness and knowledge about this form of treatment are keeping pace with its scientific progress and whether the patient and medical communities are ready for its potential expansion beyond the framework of compassionate therapies with limited availability. One could argue that the ongoing research focusing on phage therapy surveys shares similarities with clinical development of phage treatment as both activities are characterized by multidirectional approaches, varying methodology, lack of coordination, and results that are open to multiple interpretations.