Editorial Podcasts

In today’s ACT Brief, we examine new survey data revealing what patients value most in remote clinical trials, break down Sanofi’s latest partnerships aimed at advancing Alzheimer’s and autoimmune therapies, and look at how AI-powered digital pathology is being integrated into oncology research through a new biopharma collaboration.

In today’s ACT Brief, we look at new evidence showing how targeted training can build research readiness at community cancer centers, explore McKinsey’s view on how digital tools can make trials more patient-centric and geographically inclusive, and review new Phase III results that could reshape obesity and osteoarthritis treatment.

In today’s ACT Brief, we highlight new insights from McKinsey on where AI can meaningfully accelerate clinical development, break down the emerging design and regulatory forces reshaping obesity drug development, and examine why human-centered clinical guidance is becoming essential within an increasingly fragmented pharmacy system.

In today’s ACT Brief, we examine how the CRA role is transforming alongside modern clinical trial technology, review the FDA’s approval of Imfinzi plus FLOT as the first immunotherapy regimen for resectable gastric and GEJ cancers, and look at Novo Nordisk’s fast-tracked submission of its higher-dose Wegovy injectable under the Commissioner’s Priority Review Program.

Melissa Hutchens, vice president of research & benchmarking at WCG, and Jimmy Garza, senior director of clinical operations at Bayer, discuss findings from the latest WCG CenterWatch Global Site Relationship Survey, revealing a decline in overall site satisfaction. They explore key drivers behind this trend, including technology usability, communication gaps, and limited site input in protocol design, and share actionable approaches to strengthen sponsor-site partnerships and improve study execution.

In this episode of the ACT Podcast, Jeneen Donadeo, executive director of portfolio management at TransCelerate, and Laura Galuchie, senior director and TransCelerate program lead at Merck, discuss the findings from a recent TransCelerate and Tufts CSDD study revealing that nearly one-third of data collected in Phase III trials is non-essential. They explore why trial complexity continues to grow despite industry efforts toward efficiency and share strategies for reducing data burden while maintaining compliance.