PPD Awarded US Army Study to Help Develop Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Drugs
February 18 2021 - 9:00AM
Business Wire
Adaptive platform clinical research trial
design to expedite potential new treatments for veterans
PPD, Inc. (Nasdaq: PPD), a leading global contract research
organization, has been awarded Defense Health Agency funds to
support a five-year Research Project Award (RPA) to develop and
execute an adaptive platform clinical research trial of drug
interventions to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). PPD
will work with U.S. Medical Research Development Command (USAMRDC)
U.S. Army Medical Materiel Development Activity’s (USAMMDA)
Warfighter Brain Health Project Management Office (WBH PMO) to test
the effectiveness and safety of at least two pharmacotherapeutic
drug candidates for the treatment of PTSD in U.S. military active
duty personnel and veterans.
The RPA is part of the Medical Technology Enterprise Consortium
(MTEC) that is under an Other Transaction Authority with the
USAMRDC. As an MTEC member, PPD supports ongoing efforts to expand
and grow additional important public health research programs like
PTSD for the Department of Defense and U.S. Army.
“PTSD is a major unmet medical need, particularly for the men
and women who serve in the U.S. military,” said Stephen Peroutka,
M.D., Ph.D., vice president and global therapeutic area head of
neuroscience for PPD and former chief of neurology at the Palo Alto
VA Medical Center. “Our adaptive platform trial will offer an
innovative, cost-effective and much-needed approach to PTSD drug
development, with an end goal of delivering efficacious drugs to
treat this major unmet medical need. We appreciate and are honored
to have this opportunity to support active duty service members and
veterans in the effort to develop life-changing drugs for those who
face this illness.”
The adaptive platform trial design PPD plans to utilize will
provide the WBH PMO with increased efficiency and a streamlined
development process for the clinical program. The trial design
facilitates evaluating multiple experimental treatment options
simultaneously, adding new treatments over time, terminating
ineffective treatments and graduating promising treatments to the
next stage of development.
The PPD neuroscience clinical and medical experts who will be
responsible for the studies are former VA attending psychiatrists
and physicians who have treated PTSD in active-duty service members
and veterans. At the same time, the leader of PPD’s government and
public health services team who oversees the company’s team of
experts focused on this illness is a retired Army veteran who has
direct experience with those who suffer from PTSD.
PTSD is a mental health condition that affects about 8 million
American adults during a given year. Some people develop the
disorder after experiencing or witnessing a life-threatening event,
such as military combat, a natural disaster, a car accident or a
sexual assault. The number of veterans suffering from PTSD varies
by service era, but up to 30% of war veterans have had PTSD in
their lifetimes, according to the VA’s National Center for PTSD.
Currently, there are only two drugs approved by the FDA to treat
PTSD, both of which were introduced nearly two decades ago.
About PPD
PPD is a leading global contract research organization providing
comprehensive, integrated drug development, laboratory and
lifecycle management services. Our customers include
pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device, academic and
government organizations. With offices in 46 countries and more
than 26,000 professionals worldwide, PPD applies innovative
technologies, therapeutic expertise and a firm commitment to
quality to help customers bend the cost and time curve of drug
development and optimize value in delivering life-changing
therapies to improve health. For more information, visit
www.ppd.com.
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statements often include words such as “expect,” “believe,”
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expressions. Although we believe these forward-looking statements
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