Data Advancements in Oncology Clinical Research

In a recent video interview with Applied Clinical Trials, C.K. Wang, MD, chief medical officer, COTA, discussed a recent study he led on leveraging real-world data (RWD) to improve oncology reporting. Additionally, Wang highlighted recent trends and challenges in the oncology research space involving the use of RWD as well as real-world evidence (RWE).

ACT: What are some advancements with RWD and RWE in oncology research that you would like to see moving forward?

Wang: I would like to see many move forward, but I think if I had to choose in terms of the advancements that I feel the most strongly about, I would say, first and foremost, I would like to see the continued use of real-world data when it comes to a drug’s R&D life cycle. Actually bringing real-world data into all aspects from the translational phase all the way to the post-approval setting and. I think it goes without saying that we all know that clinical trials can take a long time and they're very costly, and the majority of trials fail for many different reasons, and we do believe that bringing RWD into that that trial life cycle can really help accelerate trials and hopefully bring treatments to patients faster and cheaper than how we've been doing it in the past.

I would say that another advancement that is very close to my heart, I would like to see the entire field working together and using real-world data to actually connect patients, and as we have talked about, many know, real-world data, because it is reflective of real world patient experiences, can serve as a vehicle to connect similar patients to one another and where it is possible, for example, for a patient like myself, to find another patient or other patients similar to me and understand how they were treated and how they fared. I would say that cancer patients frequently struggle with treatment decision making, and it is my belief that having access to information for other patients similar to myself will definitely help all patients make the best decisions for them as they're diagnosed with cancer and are grappling with what is the best treatment for someone like them.