R&D spending in the biotechnology sector almost doubled in the five years leading up to 2022 — and while that shows promising growth for the future of the industry, it also demonstrates an opportunity for savings that could help biotechs improve their bottom line.

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Drug industry sponsors are starting to see return on investment in decentralized trials (DCTs) according to new analysis by Tufts. Ken Getz, deputy director of the Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development, spoke about decentralized trials at DIA this month, explaining that COVID-19 was the catalyst that saw many CROs and sponsors opt for remote study models.

By Reem Yunis, VP of Digital Transformation Strategy. Fully and rapidly realizing the potential of mRNA-based prevention and treatment also requires the application of new, equally innovative research models like decentralized clinical trials (DCTs). As more researchers adopt DCTs that leverage digital technologies and reduce traditional trial participation burdens, we will see better population representation and richer, real-world data for accelerated time to market of drugs that work for every biology.

This year’s Disruptor 50 includes eight companies with a woman CEO, and nine companies with a female co-founder, up from four in 2021 and six in 2020 (2018 was a record for the list with nine total). Medable, ranked No. 15 and run by CEO Michelle Longmire, wants to bring equity to clinical trials by expanding them to diverse populations.

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Forty of the companies have a social or environmental purpose that is core to their business model. Ten of this year’s Disruptors are from the logistics sector, tackling the broken global supply chain that has fueled four-decade high inflation. Eight are reducing costs in a bloated health-care system and reaching underserved populations. Several more are dedicated to the climate crisis. Nine of this year’s Disruptors have a female founder. Sixteen feature CEOs from racial and ethnic minorities.  

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Participating in a clinical trial shouldn’t be difficult — and now it may be as easy as stopping by the neighborhood pharmacy with CVS Health’s newest partnership bringing trial recruitment to the retail space. The ubiquitous pharmacy giant established a clinical trials division last spring and recently announced a partnership with Medable, a decentralized clinical trials software company that will help provide access to research studies in select CVS MinuteClinic locations across the U.S.

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Dr. Pamela Tenaerts (Chief Science Officer) at Medable and Dr. Ken Getz (Executive Director & Professor) at Tufts CSDD discuss new study showing the financial and real-life value of decentralized trials.

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A consortium led by the Digital Medicine Society (DiMe) has been set up to try to end inequities in access to clinical trials, focusing on the increasing number of studies that use digital devices to allow participation.

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Ut enim ad minima veniam, quis nostrum exercitationem ullam corporis suscipit laboriosam, nisi ut aliquid ex ea commodi consequatur?

Ut enim ad minima veniam, quis nostrum exercitationem ullam corporis suscipit laboriosam, nisi ut aliquid ex ea commodi consequatur?