Incorporating Placebo Response In Quantitative Systems Pharmacology Models

Although quantitative systems pharmacology (QSP) models have focused on the descriptions of biological responses to drugs, less attention has been devoted to the placebo effect. Unlike responses driven purely by the drug mechanism of action, placebo responses can be difficult to describe and can have underpinnings in both psychology and neurobiology, making them challenging to incorporate in mechanistic QSP models. In this article, we discuss the pros and cons of various approaches for incorporating placebo responses in QSP models.