This story is all about introducing digital marketing techniques to clinical trials. This is a critical issue that will only get more important as pharma searches for more niche and rare-disease drugs to improve patients' health.
Or put aside the perceptual and logistical concerns, and focus on the financial ones. Per the KMR Group’s thorough Clinical Trial Cost Study, conducted in 2016, a phase I trial for patients costs $3.4 million. A phase II trial costs $8.6 million, while a phase III trial costs $21.4 million. Additionally, every month tacked on to a phase III trial costs another $671,000. Shwen Gwee, head of digital strategy, global clinical operations at Biogen, declines to weigh in on specific figures, but acknowledges “it becomes a big and expensive problem if you can’t recruit on time.”
Here at Klick we’ve “saved” (that’s a strong word, but maybe -Ed.) by increasing recruitment using Facebook and other targeted social platforms. Sometimes, it’s all about reaching the right people and positioning the opportunity correctly:
Health-tech entrepreneur Fabio Gratton, CEO of clinical-trial awareness and recruitment facilitator CureClick, agrees that perception remains a major concern, adding, “Nobody is ever specifically looking to be a part of a clinical trial. People sign up because somebody recommends they participate, or sometimes because they feel it’s their last resort.”
This story is quite detailed and worth a read if your brands are still conducting clinical trials.
In related news, Facebook had a special breakfast to discuss engaging patients for clinical trials in its NYC office (if you weren’t invited, don’t fret, neither was our social team -Ed.).
Source: MM&M
