Pharmacy Market
PRNewswire | August 10, 2023
The Project to Accelerate New Treatments for Tuberculosis (PAN-TB) collaboration announced today the start of a phase 2b/c clinical trial, sponsored by the Bill & Melinda Gates Medical Research Institute (Gates MRI). The trial will evaluate whether novel regimens that combine registered products and new chemical entities have the potential to effectively treat drug-sensitive TB (DS-TB) and inform the development of a "pan-TB" regimen capable of treating all forms of active pulmonary TB.
The regimens under evaluation are designed to explore shorter treatment durations compared to existing drug regimens, without the need for accompanying drug-resistance testing for individuals. The goal is to identify a candidate regimen suitable for phase 3 development.
Trial sites are being hosted in countries with a high burden of TB. The trial has started in South Africa with the first participant screened in the last week of July. Subsequent trial sites are expected to launch in the Philippines in August and in Peru in 2024, pending national approvals.
The collaboration is evaluating two novel drug regimens comprising five antibacterial agents—bedaquiline, delamanid, pretomanid, quabodepistat (formerly known as OPC-167832), and sutezolid
DBQS – delamanid, bedaquiline, quabodepistat and sutezolid
PBQS – pretomanid, bedaquiline, quabodepistat and sutezolid
The trial employs an innovative design that consists of two stages to assess the efficacy of the regimens and evaluate the potential to shorten treatment duration. In the initial stage, the trial will enroll approximately 129 participants. The safety, tolerability, efficacy, and pharmacokinetics of the complete DBQS and PBQS regimens, with each drug administered daily for four months (17 weeks), will be evaluated in participants 18 to 65 years old with DS pulmonary TB. Approximately 43 participants will receive the six-month (26 weeks) standard-of-care treatment for DS-TB1 in the countries where trial sites are located.2
If successful, the second stage will enroll approximately 400 participants to test the selected regimen at shorter treatment durations, ranging from two to four months, across five arms. An additional 30-40 participants will be enrolled in the standard-of-care arm for the second stage of this trial.
To support participants during their treatment, the trial integrates a Stop Treatment and Watch (STrAW) Concilium, a group made up of expert clinical consultants that will evaluate trial participants' treatment response, blinded to the specific regimen they receive, and advise trial investigators on patient management.
The trial will utilize the best available tools including regular engagement with treatment support workers, direct observation of therapy with video technology, and medication reminder monitors. A novel Biomarkers Strategy will inform promising new biomarkers with the aim of enabling faster access to data to monitor treatment outcomes for future trials.
The need for novel TB treatment regimens
Despite the introduction of new medicines in recent years, treatment remains a long, complex, and demanding process for people diagnosed with TB and can place significant costs on households and the health system. The most used drug regimen for the treatment of DS-TB requires people to take multiple drugs for at least six months, often with routine monitoring.
TB treatment can place unmanageable financial strain on individuals and their households. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that nearly half of TB-affected households face catastrophic total costs associated with treatment, including costs of travel to clinics, loss of income during treatment, and more, fueling cycles of poverty in vulnerable communities.
Further, accurate, rapid drug resistance testing is essential for early diagnosis of both drug-sensitive and drug-resistant TB, but access to testing can be limited due to high costs, technical challenges, and other barriers.
Emilio Emini, PhD, CEO, the Bill & Melinda Gates Medical Research Institute, said: "The Bill & Melinda Gates Medical Research Institute is committed to developing biomedical interventions that address global health concerns for those in the greatest need. The team at the Gates MRI looks forward to working with our partners across the PAN-TB collaboration, to evaluate the potential of these novel TB treatment regimens, in the hope that it may offer a potentially easier pathway for all people diagnosed with pulmonary TB by offering well-tolerated, shorter and simpler treatment options."
Masanori Kawasaki, Global TB Project Leader, Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd, said: "We are immensely proud to be part of this remarkable, trailblazing, collaboration which is now launching a clinical trial for a new, and shorter, pan-TB treatment regimen. We are excited too to be working closely with key partners to bring new treatment options to patients. Otsuka is dedicated to life-saving research and development as demonstrated by our sustained hard work and investment in developing a new chemical entity called quabodepistat. We are most grateful to the Bill & Melinda Gates Medical Research Institute for bringing together leaders in the field of TB, towards the goal of ending TB for good."
Ruxandra Draghia-Akli, MD, PhD, Global Head of Global Public Health R&D, Janssen Research & Development, LLC, said: "Our medicine for multidrug-resistant TB has reshaped TB treatment regimens over the past decade, but more must be done to develop the even shorter, simpler regimens needed to treat all forms of the disease and end TB once and for all. Today's milestone is another step in this direction, and we look forward to seeing the results of this important study."
Mel Spigelman, MD, President and CEO of TB Alliance, said: "Sincere thanks and congratulations to all who have made this innovative and exciting new journey a reality. Bringing revolutionary, highly impactful new treatments to all TB patients around the world is a goal that deserves and requires all our concerted dedicated efforts."
About the Project to Accelerate New Treatments for Tuberculosis
The Project to Accelerate New Treatments for Tuberculosis (PAN-TB) is a first-of-its-kind collaboration among philanthropic, non-profit and private sectors that aims to accelerate the development of an investigational drug regimen capable of treating all forms of tuberculosis.
The PAN-TB collaboration leverages members' collective assets, resources and scientific expertise to identify and evaluate new drug regimens with an acceptable safety profile, that have the potential to treat both drug-sensitive and drug-resistant TB and are well-tolerated, shorter in duration and simpler to use than existing options. The collaboration focuses on advancing research through phase 2 clinical efficacy studies to identify promising regimens for further development.
The PAN-TB collaboration plans to work closely and transparently with the European Regimen Accelerator for Tuberculosis (ERA4TB), which was launched in January 2020. New molecular entities identified by ERA4TB that show promise in initial human studies could later be incorporated into the PAN-TB collaboration's later-stage, clinical research. Several organizations, including Evotec, GSK, TB Alliance and Janssen Pharmaceutica NV, are members of both projects, which will help to ensure coordination across collaborations toward the common goal of advancing TB drug and regimen development.
The members of the PAN-TB collaboration are Evotec, GSK, Janssen Pharmaceutica NV, Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., based in Japan, TB Alliance, the Bill & Melinda Gates Medical Research Institute and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Additional members may be announced in the future.
About Evotec SE
Evotec is a life science company with a unique business model that delivers on its mission to discover and develop highly effective therapeutics and make them available to the patients. The Company's multimodality platform comprises a unique combination of innovative technologies, data and science for the discovery, development, and production of first-in-class and best-in-class pharmaceutical products. Evotec leverages this "Data-driven R&D Autobahn to Cures" for proprietary projects and within a network of partners including all Top 20 Pharma and over 800 biotechnology companies, academic institutions, as well as other healthcare stakeholders. Evotec has strategic activities in a broad range of currently underserved therapeutic areas, including e.g., neurology, oncology, as well as metabolic and infectious diseases. Within these areas of expertise, Evotec aims to create the world-leading co-owned pipeline for innovative therapeutics and has to-date established a portfolio of more than 200 proprietary and co-owned R&D projects from early discovery to clinical development. Evotec operates globally with more than 4,900 highly qualified people.
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Pharma Tech
PRNewswire | July 24, 2023
PharmaKinnex (PK), an inside sales solution provider for the pharmaceutical industry, and Data360, a data and engagement solutions provider for healthcare marketers, today announced a strategic partnership to further enhance client reach and improve patient outcomes.
From rare disease to oncology and beyond, this unique partnership is designed to deliver increased profits to clients, enable more advanced and secure data analysis, and most importantly, connect patients with life-saving treatments. PharmaKinnex and Data360 are proud to be a part of this newest revolution in pharmaceuticals and medicine, deploying Fingerprint AI solutions.
"The strategic partnership aligns perfectly with our mission to bring unprecedented value to our clients," said Michael White, CEO of PharmaKinnex. "Data360's powerful solutions to identify, target, and engage individuals, while providing valuable analytics about those audiences, will extend our reach to more potential patients and prescribers, providing a sizable edge in the rare disease sector."
Integration of Data360's deep insights with PK's marketing expertise will improve PK's call plans, allowing PK to message to new audiences and reach prescribers ahead of the competition. The partnership positions PK as the only inside sales organization with access to such a high level of data, offering a unique and powerful industry advantage.
"We are eager to partner with PharmaKinnex and contribute our solutions that identify and engage relevant audiences throughout their digital life, and so improve the patient journey experience," said James Miller, president & CEO of Data360. "For this unique market offering, Data360 will identify health care professionals (HCPs) and patients searching online for rare diseases by activating our Fingerprint AI solution. By providing insights for timeliness, relevance, and intent behavior, Data360 will equip PK with valuable insights and reach to elevate its services to clients."
Data360's Fingerprint AI technology is sparking a revolution in healthcare marketing, fueling omnichannel programs with its ability to hyper-target both HCP and patient or caregiver audiences based on online behavior and in-market search criteria.
Data360's datasets, coupled with the Fingerprint AI solution, empower brand teams, healthcare marketers, clinical trial teams, and now PK to leverage audience intent. Its service achieves high-quality, segmented, and targeted leads for HCP marketing, patient engagement, and clinical trial recruitment.
About PharmaKinnex
PharmaKinnex is the leading multichannel marketing company in the U.S. that exclusively serves Life Sciences clients. PK is also the longest-tenured independent company in its competitive set, with over 18 years of continuous support of its industry partners. The PK Call Center successfully executes high-ROI product detailing, inside sales and customer service programs. Each solution is designed with the support of the experienced, award-winning PK leadership team and is tailored to target every important constituency identified, including but not limited to office-based prescribers (physicians, NPs, PAs) across every specialty, hospitals and health systems.
About Data360
With the mission to turn data into intelligence, Data360 provides solutions and services to effectively identify, target, and engage audiences. We empower healthcare marketers seeking broader and better access to physicians, HCPs, patients, and caregivers. We deliver unequaled first-party data, proprietary technology (Fingerprint AI) for access to audience intent and behavior, and a focus on cost-effective and compliant ways to activate and engage healthcare audiences.
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Pharmacy Market
PRNewswire | July 17, 2023
Cleveland Clinic Laboratories and LabConnect have announced a strategic alliance to accelerate clinical trials and connect patients to new medicines for improved patient care.
Through this alliance, LabConnect will utilize Cleveland Clinic Laboratories, the reference laboratory within Cleveland Clinic. LabConnect will leverage the health system's extensive array of testing and assay validation services to support laboratory testing for an increasing number of clinical trials.
"This new collaboration will enable our organizations to leverage our complementary strengths to deliver cutting edge testing to an expanded patient base, furthering the mission of Cleveland Clinic to touch more lives," said Brian Rubin, M.D., PhD., chairman of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Institute at Cleveland Clinic.
The alliance will also significantly accelerate turnaround times for testing results and help researchers achieve clinical trial milestones sooner, resulting in more efficiently developing therapies for patients.
"With our shared mission to create healthier communities, we are excited about this alliance with Cleveland Clinic Laboratories to further accelerate the development of new medicines for patients around the world," said Dawn Sherman, LabConnect Chief Executive Officer.
LabConnect will also establish a new facility to process samples for testing in Cleveland, which is anticipated to result in potential new job opportunities for Northeast Ohio as part of the Cleveland Innovation District.
Partnering with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, contract research organizations (CROs), and foundations/non-governmental organizations (NGOs), LabConnect provides innovative central laboratory support services for clinical trials of all sizes and complexity across the globe. As the requirements for clinical trials and the drug development process have become more complex, LabConnect meets these requirements by offering researchers scientific and technical expertise for all laboratory-related needs, advising on strategies for lab data collection and providing end-to-end analytical and logistical solutions tailored to each trial.
Cleveland Clinic performs more than 23 million tests each year in Ohio, providing access to high-quality, cost-effective, and convenient laboratory services. More than 100 board-certified anatomic and clinical pathologists, paired with hundreds of expertly trained medical technologists and laboratory technicians, provide essential services and test development to guide clinical decision making for more than 5,000 clients locally and globally.
LabConnect's Co-founder and Chief Development Officer, Jeff Mayhew stated, "With our combined team bringing an unparalleled breadth and depth of experience and expertise, our clients have access to the top clinicians and scientists in the world to help them develop their lab scientific strategy and optimize their protocol for accelerating the development of new medicines."
"By broadening access to expertise and quality care in pathology and laboratory medicine, we are able to continue evolving our services." said Ziad Peerwani, MD, Medical Director of Cleveland Clinic Laboratories. "Through this teamwork, we will support and elevate our work with local and global communities while creating the care for tomorrow."
About Cleveland Clinic
Cleveland Clinic is a nonprofit multispecialty academic medical center that integrates clinical and hospital care with research and education. Located in Cleveland, Ohio, it was founded in 1921 by four renowned physicians with a vision of providing outstanding patient care based upon the principles of cooperation, compassion and innovation. Cleveland Clinic has pioneered many medical breakthroughs, including coronary artery bypass surgery and the first face transplant in the United States. U.S. News & World Report consistently names Cleveland Clinic as one of the nation's best hospitals in its annual "America's Best Hospitals" survey. Among Cleveland Clinic's 77,000 employees worldwide are more than 5,658 salaried physicians and researchers, and 19,000 registered nurses and advanced practice providers, representing 140 medical specialties and subspecialties. Cleveland Clinic is a 6,665-bed health system that includes a 173-acre main campus near downtown Cleveland, 22 hospitals, more than 275 outpatient facilities, including locations in northeast Ohio; southeast Florida; Las Vegas, Nevada; Toronto, Canada; Abu Dhabi, UAE; and London, England. In 2022, there were 12.8 million outpatient encounters, 303,000 hospital admissions and observations, and 270,000 surgeries and procedures throughout Cleveland Clinic's health system. Patients came for treatment from every state and 185 countries.
About LabConnect
LabConnect improves lives by partnering with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, contract research organizations (CROs), and foundations/non-governmental organizations (NGOs), to accelerate the development of new medicines around the world. LabConnect delivers a unique combination of support services through Central Laboratory Services and Functional Service Provider Solutions that are tailor-made, timely and flexible to meet the evolving study demands of traditional to increasingly complex clinical trials.
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