Bayer has entered a strategic alliance with the University of Colorado Anschutz (CU Anschutz), UCHealth, and Children’s Hospital Colorado, with a focus on clinical trial collaboration and drug development advancements.
The collaboration marks Bayer’s first such partnership with an academic medical centre and aims to expedite clinical research by linking industry resources with academic expertise.
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It aims to increase the efficiency of clinical trials, expand patient access to investigational therapies, and support new medical discoveries.
Initial areas of research will include cardiovascular disease, cell and gene therapy, chronic kidney disease, neurodegenerative disorders, oncology, ophthalmology, and women’s health.
Bayer clinical development and operations head Christoph Koenen said: “Bayer is committed to bringing first-in-class or best-in-class therapies to market for the people who need them.
“Our alliance with this renowned academic medical centre brings together several leading organisations to deliver new, innovative ways to advance clinical research for the benefit of patients.”
The alliance will focus on strengthening clinical trial infrastructure so more studies can be conducted at a faster pace.
It also aims to facilitate earlier access to investigational medicines for patients, and encourage wider participation among researchers, clinicians, and health systems.
Key aspects of the collaboration include access to clinical, scientific, and operational specialists to support trial design and planning; enhanced administrative and data science resources to reduce the time needed to launch studies; and improved capacity to enrol suitable patient populations using available clinical data.
The agreement will also expand opportunities for one of the nation’s prominent paediatric research programmes at Children’s Hospital Colorado.
As an early example of the alliance’s activities, UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital has been chosen as a Phase III trial site for an investigational cellular therapy in advanced Parkinson’s disease, utilising the expertise of CU Anschutz neurologists and neurosurgeons.
Additional paediatric research initiatives are also under consideration.
Earlier this year, Bayer’s radioligand therapy, Xofigo (radium-223 dichloride), demonstrated its first-line, combinatory treatment potential in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer with bone metastases in a pivotal Phase III trial.
