Trial technology and review services firm WCG says its strategic partnering scheme will help CROs avoid delays relating to limited trial site capacity.
The CRO Strategic Alliance Program will provide contractors with access to a library of trial operations data and technologies, which they can use to streamline studies. WCG says it will also facilitate working relationships with research sites for CROs that join.
According to WCG President Nick Slack, the aim is to help CROs overcome the current imbalance between high customer demand for studies and the limited availability of research sites.
“The clinical trials industry is experiencing a period of unprecedented highs and lows. Clinical trial starts are at an all-time high—a positive trend for the entire healthcare ecosystem and, particularly, patients,” Slack said. “At the same time, investigative site capacity is at an all-time low, adding complexity and delays to trials needed to bring life-saving therapies to market as safely and efficiently as possible. Along with other lingering effects of the pandemic, this leaves the life sciences industry in a tough spot.”
WCG’s interactions with CROs have been extensive, according to a since withdrawn IPO prospectus the firm filed last year. The company claims to work with 140 CROs worldwide—including all 10 of the top 10 largest contractors—across a broad range of therapeutic areas. The prospectus also states the firm supported over 4,000 clinical trials from March 2020 through February 2021.
The alliance program is one of several clinical trial-focused strategic moves WCG has undertaken in recent years. In January, for example, the firm premiered Total Safety, which is a turnkey system for case processing, aggregate reporting, drug safety and safety letter distribution.
Last year, WCG made a string of acquisitions in the CRO services space beginning in May when it spent $36 million on the Avoca Group, a clinical research and life science consulting firm.