RE: Excellent Guardian piece re: UK Drug trials.13 May 2023 18:43
Not behind a paywall when I tried to access it.
It notes, "The number of trials initiated in the UK fell by 41% between 2017 and 2021, with a similar drop in cancer trials, according to the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI), which represents about 70 drugmakers. The decline has been made worse by the Covid-19 pandemic as NHS hospitals, which conduct much of each study, have been overwhelmed by frontline work; more than 7 million people are on waiting lists for surgery or specialist treatment, a new record.
“Delays in set-up and approval of clinical trials and the fact that research isn’t fully embedded in the NHS were already challenges prior to the pandemic, but they have been exacerbated with the added pressure of the pandemic and resulting backlog,” says Jennifer Harris, the ABPI’s director of research policy."
There's also a table showing UK behind Oz in the number of P1 & P2 trials initiated in 2021 however Oz isn't in the top 10 for P3. Interestingly Spain comes 3rd (behind US & China) for P2 & 3 trials - I'm sure 737 was trialled in Spain.