A Chief Medical Officer's Perspective On Selecting A CRO

By Rob Wright, Chief Editor, Life Science Leader magazine

Santosh Vetticaden, Ph.D., M.D. is a drug development professional with over 20 years of experience spanning large pharma and biotech across multiple therapeutic areas. He has been involved in trials from Phase I-Phase IV and has been extensively involved in the design, planning, and implementation of global trials. Vetticaden has been involved in the contract research organization (CRO) selection process from an executive level at multiple organizations including Scios/J&J and Maxygen and most recently serving as the chief medical officer for Cubist Pharmaceuticals. As a result, we at Life Science Leader magazine thought he might have some thoughts to share from a chief medical officer’s perspective. What follows are his responses to 11 questions on things to consider when developing a strategic partnership with a CRO.