Need to Outsource Clinical Trials Greater than Ever

According to a recent report published by Cutting Edge Information, biopharmaceutical companies rely on clinical outsourcing more than ever.

Clinical budgets have steadily risen since 2008, with the biggest increase seen in outsourcing Phase II studies.

Rise in clinical budget between 2008 and 2010

Phase I from 35 to 58

Phase II, from 36 to 63

Phase III from 46 to 55

Ryan McGuire from Cutting Edge Information provides a rational for this surge: “Companies are less equipped today to manage and execute the increasingly complex details of clinical trial operations.”

The report also reveals the largest clinical cost drivers. VIBpharma’s Outsourcing in Clinical Trials West Coast conference will address five out of the seven cited areas of concern:

• Patient recruitment: 32%
• Vendor fees: 25%
• Site recruitment: 14%
• CTMS and other technology: 12%
• Site retention: 8%
• Data management and validation: 7%
• Patient retention: 2%

SOURCE: Cutting Edge Information

To find out which, click here to see the 2012 agenda.

The number of outsourcing contracts signed in the pharmaceutical vertical grew more than 6 times faster than the overall industry average

Outsourcing deal signings were at a 10 year high in 2009 showing a growth of 81 per cent, according to a report released by Everest Group.

It has been estimated that outsourcing levels will rise to “10-15 per cent of the pharmaceutical industry’s total annual spend of US$490-670 billion”.

“The pharma industry is a nascent adopter of outsourcing as compared to some other industries, but multiple factors have emerged that are driving adoption, and we saw strong evidence of these dynamics coming into play last year when the market peaked,” said Amneet Singh, vice president — Global Sourcing. “The spike we saw in 2010 was largely the result of pent up demand from the recessionary economy; however, the business drivers for outsourcing adoption remain and continue to evolve. Cost pressures, a changing pharma ecosystem, emerging markets and other market forces are continuing to drive the market. Moving forward, we expect to see an increase in sourcing of drug development and research, supply chain, data management and analytics functions.”

SOURCE: Everest Group