Emerging Trends in Clinical Trial Landscape

COVID-19 pandemic raised a lot of health and safety concerns, with most countries focused on containing the transmission of the virus. Amidst this, global clinical trials also faced its impact, with multiple suspensions, delays, and shutdowns. In light of this uncertainty, study sponsors were forced to evaluate innovative ways of designing and conducting trials. This boosted adoption of technologies such as telehealth, e-consent, and decentralized virtual trials, which enabled easy and accessible patient use of softwares and devices. As a result, challenges around patient safety and virus transmission were addressed, improving accuracy, and reducing time required for data collection and analysis. Furthermore, regulatory agencies also helped propel digital use, through amendments in trial policies and protocols. The future of clinical trials will see enhanced use of such interventions, aided by governments worldwide, regulatory authorities, and pharmaceutical sponsors.