Outsourced Clinical Trials Going Through a Rough Patch

This latest post on BioPharmaLife discusses how the multi-million dollar outsourced clinical trials industry in India is currently going through rough times, as CROs are facing difficulties in recruiting patients and keeping them for the entire period of the trial. There are serious worries since it is estimated that $1 billion will be invested in outsourced clinical trials in India by 2011.

The large volume of people available in India and China make these locations ideal for clinical trials. D Anderson has joined with Clinical Research Education and Management Academy to focus on patient recruitment in the future. The CEO of D Anderson mentions:

"Earlier, we used to recruit patients and retain them till the trial is over but currently the number seemed dwindling. Therefore, in this conference, we are planning a strategised approach."

Pharma Companies Are Outsourcing Less of Clinical Development Budget

Pharmaceutical Online reports that according to a study conducted by Cutting Edge Information, pharma companies across the industry are cutting back on outsourcing as a percentage of clinical development budgets. Compared to 2006, outsourcing as a percentage of the budget has reduced an average of 20% for every phase.

David Richardson, the lead author of the report mentions:

"Companies are now realizing that outsourcing does not necessarily make things easier, cheaper, or remove a burden from their plate. Research has appeared arguing against the cost-saving effects of outsourcing. Also, companies are being more frugal. Keeping things in-house grants easier oversight because of institutional proximity, ensuring efficient and competent work, instead of spending the same time managing a CRO."

No Need to Fear the EU Clinical Trial Directive

Many in the clinical trial industry were worried that the EU Directive would have a negative affect on the industry. In the latest study from the British Medical Journal as reported by Outsourcing-pharma.com, they reassure that so far there have been no negative repercussions, at least for Denmark. The main reason for the concern stemmed from worries that the amount of paper work that the Directive would require might result in public institutions being overwhelmed and unable to keep up. As the study reassures:

“academic researchers can match the demands for the good clinical practice quality standard that industry have adhered to for many years.”

CRO Revenues are Expected to Increase

According to this article in in-PharmaTechnologist.com a recent study conducted by Turner Investment Partners reveals that while CROs are in demand across the whole pharma sector, they will be particularly important to smaller scale bio-pharmaceutical companies as they invest in new drug testing.

The article also details that 30% of CROs revenue come from biotech firms, which indicates that there will be heavy competition from the estimated 500 CROs around the world. Turner Investment Partners estimates that CROs will become part of up to 50% of all drug development projects at the clinical stage and pre-clinical stage within the next couple of years.

CROs growing along with the regions they are situated in

In a recent opinion piece at the Salisbury Post, one person comments on the current hiring situation with CROs: they can’t find enough people. This could possibly be due to the lack of science and technology training in K-12 schools, but one thing is for sure. There aren’t enough knowledgeable employees trained in the needs of Pharma to populate the jobs that Research Triangle Park in the Raleigh/Durham area.

Another area that is reaping the benefits of the growing CROs industry is Larimer, Colorado. According to this article at the Coloradoan, there is a wealth of CRO organizations with many talented scientists who can begin to work on the current strain baby boomers are placing on the Pharma industry. Colorado Histo-Prep, Legacy BioDesign, RMC Bioscience, Rocky Mountain Instrumental Lab, and High Quality Research are just some of the research facilities that populate the region. Kathy Kregel believes that with these rich companies in the region, there will be more biopharma companies looking to relocate to this region, which will bring wealth of jobs for those who have training in science.