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Spain is leading: what are clinical trials facing on this new course?
C
linical trials are increasingly present in the day-to-day work of healthcare professionals. We talked to a great expert on the subject, Óscar
Salamanca, President of the Spanish Association of Clinical Research Companies (AECIC) and CEO of APICES-CRO, to see where we are and where we can improve. Although Spain is the country in Europe that participates in the most innovative clinical trials, there is still a long way to go. Research must always be active and unwavering.
How do you see the “new course” that we have started in clinical trials in our country? How many trials can we reach?
Óscar Salamanca [OS]: Spain is leading in Europe in the number of clinical trials underway in recent years due to the existence of good research teams in public and private centres, as well as world-class researchers renowned for in different therapeutic areas. In addition, the agility in the start-up and the fast recruitment rates for the trials in our country makes it very attractive for trial sponsors from USA, EU and APAC. There is a commitment from all stakeholders including health authorities (AEMPS), ethical committees and both public and private centers to develop research projects in very competitive time frames and with high levels of quality and data integrity compared with other countries. At present, the number of new clinical trials launched in Spain is over 1,000 and the only bottleneck to further growth is the participation of patients, since there are teams in the centres that are prepared, experienced, well trained in GCP-ICH, and in centres with very good infrastructures that still have idle capacity and new equipment. In addition, there are new centres that are consolidating these structures and becoming certified to be able to participate in clinical trials.
22 | Outsourcing in Clinical Trials Handbook
Óscar Salamanca, President of the Spanish Association of Clinical Research Companies (AECIC) and CEO of APICES-CRO
Being the basis for better health, what is Spain lacking in the sector, what could we improve on apart from the general overload?
OS: In the public sector, Spain needs to prioritise the work of researchers in health policy, not only in terms of the burden of care in routine clinical practice, but also to include and provide resources to research centers to carry out clinical trials. It is very curious how private centres understand the importance of being at the forefront of research as a center and as a country and providing the best possible treatment to patients through their participation in clinical trials, and they create professional structures and provide them with resources to meet all the objectives and requirements necessary to participate as a centre in an innovative clinical trial. Investment in research and the necessary
resources result in having the best treatments for patients at a national level, recognition for healthcare professionals in the scientific field, as well as reducing treatment costs (the clinical trial medication is provided free of charge by the sponsor by law), in addition to generating extraordinary income for the centres from participation, which can be applied to improving
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