GUEST COLUMNISTS

• How A $96M Gift Is Transforming Pediatric Brain Cancer Clinical Trial Infrastructure

  By pairing donor priorities with research needs at Children's National, Milken Institute SPARC is turning philanthropy into faster trials, stronger infrastructure, and long-term care goals.

• Lessons In Forecasting Discipline From A $40B Supply Chain

  Forecasting errors rarely start with the algorithm. They start when protocol changes, enrollment and site data reach the supply plan too late to prevent waste and disruption.

• The Pharmacy Benefit No One Is Managing: Clinical Research As A Care Option

  Pharmacies could make trials more accessible — if they preserve patient trust while research partners handle the operational burden.

• Planning A Global Clinical Trial With The Right Sites, Not The Most Sites

  Less is more for Yi Larson and the team at Excursion Therapeutics, which opted to build right site network — not the largest one — for its Phase 2 trial.

• Turning Pediatric Cancer Discoveries Into Medicines Requires Better Connections

  Promising pediatric cancer science often stalls before patients benefit. David Adler explains how better connections could change that.

• Turning A Historically Limited Modality Into A Respiratory Drug Opportunity

  How can sponsors revive a promising modality with known safety limits? Vast Therapeutics CEO Nate Stasko, Ph.D., explains how ALX1 is reshaping nitric oxide delivery.

• It Is Time To Require Human-Relevant Efficacy Evidence Before First-In-Human Trials

  Why, when human-relevant evidence of likely efficacy can be generated before a trial begins, is it not evaluated before patients are exposed?

• Immune Priming, Oncolytic Viruses, And The Next Phase Of Solid Tumor Immunotherapy

  Can priming with oncolytic viruses be a better path to reeducating the immune system to recognize and attack cancer? Oncolytics Biotech advisor Richard Vile, Ph.D., says yes.