Patient enrollment is one of the biggest challenges of declining research and development efficiency, according to a new survey from Icon and Pharma Intelligence.
Pharmaceutical industry executives discussed the challenges facing the pharmaceutical industry outlined in the survey in a recent roundtable. The discussion was designed to help industry experts figure out the potential for creating savings while improving trial efficiency and assessing how digital disruption is creating change.
The survey reports that patient enrollment was one of the most reported challenges is 56% of respondents citing it. Site startup and regulatory approval delays and changes were both reported as challenges by 43% of respondents. The Icon survey also reported that study startup, patient recruitment and retention and protocol development show the most potential for creating savings and efficiencies.
“ICON recognizes the challenges our customers are facing and is focused on building our integrated site and patient network to improve trial start up, as well as patient recruitment and retention,” CEO of Icon Steve Cutler said in a press release.
The survey also reported which technology trends would have the greatest impact on clinical trial operations. 36% of survey respondents said leveraging big data and AI technologies has the most impact on improving clinical trial efficiency. Another 35% reported that risk-based approaches toward monitoring held greater opportunity for impact on clinical development.
Icon’s survey also showed how the industry is willing to push for a holistic effort to transform trials. About 22% of survey respondents said their organization has an integrated effort to drive clinical trial transformations while 83% believed strategic partnerships with CROs will make clinical trials more successful over the next five years.