The Indian Society for Clinical Research (ISCR), an industry association representing drug researchers and clinical research companies, has appealed to the government that the country must facilitate and scale up drug trials in the country to make available new treatments for growing cancer patients.
The society, which reminded the stakeholders the urgent need to conduct fresh clinical trials in India on February 4, the World Cancer Day, for newer and more effective cancer therapies, said the demographic distribution of different kinds of cancers in the country also makes it important to invest in local clinical research so that India can find more effective solutions for cancers.
The ISCR appeal on the World Cancer Day was in the wake of regulatory uncertainties in the country for approving clinical researches in the past few years. Due to regulatory issues, several clinical research organisations and drug research companies had shifted their clinical research projects to other countries and there was a drastic reduction in number of new drug trial approvals also in the country in the last several years.
There are a good number of new drugs for cancer in the research and development pipeline of top drug research companies globally. But, unless the country allows them to include this region also in their clinical research with adequate safety measures, the patients in India will not be benefited by these new drugs immediately.
The past decades have witnessed hundreds and thousands of lives lost to cancer, and present day statistics only confirm the disease’s top spot in the list of life-threatening illnesses.
Cancer is the second biggest killer after heart disease in India and the data from the WHO World Cancer Report released in 2015 indicates that in India, there are 7 lakh new cancer cases per year, killing over 3.5 lakh people every year.
Experts fear that this count is only expected to rise in the next 10-15 years, which makes it crucial to focus on new and more effective cancer treatments – in addition to the focus on prevention and diagnostics – and bolster the momentum of clinical research in our country.
Emphasising the need for collaborative action to fight cancer, ISCR said that it believes that encouraging more clinical research in cancer can increase patient access to more effective and affordable treatment in India.
"For cancer patients, time is of essence. I have personally experienced challenges in trying to access a clinical trial for my wife, which was the only treatment option available for her," said Vivek Tomar, husband of a patient suffering from lung cancer.
"For many cancer patients, participation in a clinical trial is a matter of life and death. Patients cannot wait and it is important for us to remember this. We need an environment that encourages and fosters clinical research so that patients like my wife can benefit."
"ISCR welcomes every development that helps in conducting clinical research in India and is fully committed to the country’s quest for newer cancer treatments," said Suneela Thatte, president of ISCR.
"I believe the recent regulatory amendments in India have led to a more conducive environment for clinical trials in the country –this when combined with our vast pool of scientific talent and resources– presents a wonderful window of opportunity for us to strengthen clinical research in the country, so that every patient can have access to the latest cancer therapies," she added.
According to C.S. Pramesh, professor and chief of thoracic surgery at the Department of Surgical Oncology at Tata Memorial Hospital, there have been some major advances in medical research over the last decade or so, but the conversion of these major medical advances into what has actually reached the patients has not fared too well.
"We need to focus our research and resources on finding treatments for the more prevalent cancers in India - head and neck, breast, cervical and gall bladder. As a country, we have a moral obligation to participate in clinical research and a responsibility to our patients. Institutions such as ours have made a lot of investments in clinical research to address the unique needs of our patient population. Clinical research by the country and for the country is the way forward," Pramesh said.
BW Reporters
Unnikrishnan is currently Senior Associate Editor with BW Businessworld at its Mumbai Bureau. During his two decades long journalistic career, he has received several media awards and recognitions. His articles on healthcare, life sciences and intellectual property rights (IPR) have been republished by several international blogs and journals.
