Drug developers actively improving efficiency of clinical trials, says Tufts CSDD

Looking to improve the operational efficiency of clinical trials, drug developers are actively pursuing new strategies that include collaborating with investigative sites in developing protocols and educating patients about trials before they agree to participate, according to a panel of leaders from the research-based drug industry recently convened by the USA-based Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development.

"The pharmaceutical and biotech industry is facing a crisis in that it needs to develop new drugs more quickly and control expenses," said Tufts CSDD senior research fellow Ken Getz, adding: "Developers understand that substantial operational improvements will more likely flow from new approaches that increase the probability of success, rather than from actions which merely seek to reduce or prevent failures."

According to Tufts CSDD, two-thirds of investigative sites fail to meet the patient enrollment requirements for a given clinical trial. And, whereas in 2001 nearly half of all patients screened for clinical trials completed them, in 2010 less than one in four screened patients were retained for the duration of the clinical trial.