Academic Clinical Trials Vs Industry – What’s the Difference?
Clinical trials are fundamental to testing new medicine, investigating existing medicine and improving healthcare. Most research protocols are either designed by researchers employed by the pharmaceutical/medical molecules companies or investigators from academic institutions.
In this insight we’re going to take a look at the main differences between Academic Clinical Trials and Industry initiated trials.
Funding
Industry clinical trials are generally funded by a for-profit entity. The primary investigator (PI) salary and the costs associated with running the trial are all covered by the pharmaceutical or medical device company that created the clinical trial.
In academic trials, however, the PI applies for program and government grants to fund their research.
Motivations
Ultimately, both industry-initiated and academic clinical trials strive to improve healthcare. However, they have individual motivators for pursuing clinical research projects. In order to market a new product and generate profit for the company, industry needs clinical trials to provide evidence for success of a new drug or medical device.
Whereas in academia, researchers are motivated by potential academic and medical impact. Success and career progression are measured by the impact of their scientific contribution and number of publications researchers produce.
Timelines
Because drug development takes years, industry is often under strict timelines for the launch of the new product. This is especially true when a patent for new investigational product is involved. The sooner the company can profit from a patent-protected product, the better it is for the company. Similarly, pharmaceutical & medical corporations serve shareholders, who want to see profitability and quick turnaround times.
In academia, researchers don’t answer to shareholders and can take time with their study design and execution.
Trial Type
Academic institutions tend to pursue comparative studies where the investigators are either comparing one intervention to another, comparing a medley of interventions or comparing a pharmaceutical intervention to a non-pharmaceutical intervention.
On the other hand, industry led clinical trials are often researching the safety and efficacy of a new drug or medical product. In general, Industry initiated trials may include Phase I to Phase IV.
Investigators
The industry often enlists contract research organizations (CROs) to run their clinical trials. The CROs are then responsible for finding primary investigators, sites for running the clinical trials and the overall clinical trial management.
Conversely, at academic institutions, the PI is responsible for running their own clinical trials and for finding partners at different locations to test their intervention. Many times, they use various companies, like clinical trial logistics providers to support the detailed work required for a successful study.
Ownership
Intellectual property belongs to whomever designed the research protocol. Since industry-initiated studies are designed by the industry, they own the rights to the investigational product being researched, the clinical data and the publication rights.
In academia, the research protocol is designed by the PI conducting the research, and therefore the PI has ownership over the intellectual property rights (i.e. if a new intervention is being investigated), the data and the publication rights.
Supporting Academic and Industry Clinical Trials
At Oximio, we are proud to work with industry, CROs and academic partners, building on our 20+ years’ experience and expertise. Our tailored, end-to-end, supply chain solutions play a vital, behind-the-scenes role in helping to bring lifechanging clinical research to patients worldwide.
If you are planning your next clinical trial, why not explore our services, or better still, contact us to discuss your requirements. We’d be delighted to support your research.
