Virtual Clinical Trials: The Patient Engagement Benefits And Challenges

By Carla Brown

It’s no secret just how much of a struggle it is to recruit patients to clinical trials, keep them enrolled until the study ends and, finally, get the trial drug approved. And that’s not to mention the huge costs associated with trials which are often unsuccessful or incomplete.

It seems inevitable then that sponsors are beginning to look with great interest at the possibilities presented by virtual or remote clinical trials.

Virtual trials have evolved since the first big internet-based trial in 2001 when Eli Lilly studied its erectile dysfunction drug Tadalafil by conducting online surveys with patients. We’ll look at the benefits of the virtual approach to clinical, and make note some of the persistent challenges that still need to be overcome.