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ISCR’s theme for International Clinical Trials Day is ‘Patients First’

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Indian Society for Clinical Research (ISCR) has chosen ‘Patients First’ as the theme to commemorate International Clinical Trials Day which is on May 20. Suneela Thatte, President, ISCR said, “The quest for finding superior and lifesaving medicines is an ongoing one. For every medicine and device that meets with marketing approval, there is a larger story of years of research in laboratories and extensive patient participation in clinical research to determine their safety and efficacy.”

Thatte further said, “Patients help patients. Today all of us have access to better and newer treatments because of patients who have participated in clinical trials. Thus, we all are beneficiaries of clinical research. Yet it is unfortunate that the progress of clinical research in India has been stalled by several extraneous factors denying patients the opportunity to participate in and benefit from ongoing clinical research. The impact of this on patients is huge. A slowdown in clinical research in the country means little or no access to newer and better medicines for our patients and a rising disease burden.”

“We request the media to support us in highlighting the impact of the current regulatory environment on patients and what this means for the future of healthcare in our country. The declining number of clinical trials in India does not augur well for a country with an increasing healthcare burden,” added Thatte. “We also ask the media to join us in paying tribute to patients across India whose participation in clinical trials has made access to today’s medicines possible. For all those who live in hope of a cure, we need an environment that fosters clinical research, drug discovery and innovation.”

ISCR is an association of clinical research professionals that aims to build awareness of clinical research as a speciality in India and to facilitate its growth in the country while helping to evolve the highest standards of quality and ethics. To that extent, we are fully supportive of the initiatives undertaken by regulatory authorities to create a more robust and regulated environment in India for the conduct of clinical research and will continue to work very closely with different stakeholders in the development of regulations that will safeguard and protect patients in a clinical trial.

On this day in 1747, Dr James Lind, a Scottish physician, conducted the first controlled clinical trial on a group of sailors suffering from scurvy. Through their participation in the study, the sailors contributed to the discovery that Vitamin C was an effective treatment for scurvy.

EP News BureauMumbai

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