Getting drugs to cross the blood-brain barrier can be a challenge for sponsor companies. Kazia Therapeutics is working on a treatment for glioblastoma, the most common and aggressive form of brain cancer. Kazia will use an adaptive approach in a Phase 2 trial using a product which was designed by Genentech to cross the blood-brain barrier.
When it comes to drug development, the pharmaceutical industry has long followed the same model for how we approach clinical trials. However, we are on the precipice of a new opportunity for the entire healthcare system in which emerging technologies can help us develop and deliver medicines to patients in more agile and efficient ways than ever before.
Artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain technology, predictive analytics, cloud computing, and speech and image recognition are the latest buzzwords across industries. Numerous companies are looking to inject these technologies into their operations, and a great deal of funding is pouring into related startups.
Excitement around the potential for blockchain platforms continues to build. This parallels the surge in popularity of blockchain-based cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin. Meanwhile, “critics argue it’s all hype — a technological hammer looking for a nail — and that the complexities of health information prevent practical use of blockchain technology.”
The START II Study, conducted by Tufts CSDD and technology provider goBalto, attempted to determine how bad the study start-up process had become, and how pharma could address the growing problem. It now takes six to seven months on average to perform study start-up. Despite new technologies making the start-up process easier, we still have 11 percent of sites that are never activated.
Getting new treatments to patients is a long and costly endeavor. Most drugs take upward of eight years and billions of dollars to receive regulatory approval. One of the biggest problems sponsor companies face when trying to launch a Phase 3 trial is finding enough patients to take part in the study.
Your employees will always resist technology change. Change tends to bring fear and uncertainty. To overcome fear and make your installation a success, focus on implementation, change management, and providing immediate benefits to users.
For many companies, implementing new clinical technologies can be a difficult endeavor. Compatibility issues, training, and employees who are resistant to change can make implementations a challenge. What can executives can do to better prepare for change when it comes to their companies?
Since my first Amazon article, readers contacted me about Amazon-like transformations in clinical research. I never expected clinical research trends to emulate Amazon’s playbook.
According to a common refrain, blockchain will “transform” and “disrupt” the life sciences industry. While the technology’s applications in industries such as banking and broader financial services are readily apparent and, in fact, already being adopted, tangible applications in the life sciences prove more nebulous.
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