New Report Shows Illinois Clinical Trials Benefit State’s Health and Economy
March 15 2012 - 10:01AM
Business Wire
Working in collaboration with Illinois’ university medical
schools, hospitals and clinical research centers, the nation’s
biopharmaceutical research companies are conducting or have
conducted since 1999 nearly 4,400 clinical trials of new medicines
in the state, a new report shows.
More than half of Illinois clinical tests target or have
targeted the nation’s six most debilitating chronic diseases –
asthma, cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes and mental
illnesses, according to “Research in Your Backyard: Pharmaceutical
Clinical Trials in Illinois.”
The report – compiled by Pharmaceutical Research and
Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) – also shows that 474 of the new
medicine trials are still active and recruiting patients. The
appendix of the document provides information on each of those
tests because for some disease sufferers, the trials could be
viable new therapeutic options to discuss with their doctors.
The new PhRMA clinical trial report, which can be found at
www.phrma.org/research/clinical-research-trials, was released at a
recent hearing of the Illinois House Biotech Committee.
The report stresses that many of the medicines being tested in
Illinois are new-generation biotechnology drugs, including
monoclonal antibody therapies for cancer and lupus. Monoclonal
antibodies are laboratory-made versions of a naturally-occurring
immune system protein that binds to and neutralizes foreign toxic
substances.
“Through biotechnology, our companies are developing new ways to
not only more effectively treat disease, but also to predict,
preempt and prevent it,” said Jeff Trewhitt, a PhRMA spokesman and
one of the authors of the new report. “The clinical trials of these
cutting-edge new medicines are helping to advance science, patient
health care and the state’s economy.”
David Miller, president and CEO of the Illinois Biotechnology
Industry Organization (iBIO), added that “at a time when the state
is focused on creating jobs and rebuilding the economy, clinical
research and the biopharmaceutical industry have been real bright
spots. These companies provide thousands of good-paying jobs, and
to the extent they succeed in finding innovative medicines, they
make the entire workforce stronger and more productive.”
Reports in recent years have shown biopharmaceutical companies
to be a source of jobs, tax revenue and research spending. An
Archstone Consulting report found that in 2008 the industry
supported more than 167,000 jobs throughout Illinois. Employees
working directly for the companies were paid $2.8 billion, leading
to more than $75 million in state taxes and more than $710 million
in federal taxation.
Biopharmaceutical research firms that year also invested $2.3
billion in research and development in the state.
The thousands of clinical trials that have been conducted or are
still underway are critical to the development of new medicines,
accounting for seven of the 10 to 15 years required to develop a
new drug and 45 to 75 percent of the average $1.2 billion cost of
creating one new biotechnology medication.
“Testing new treatments involves thousands of patients and the
generation of huge amounts of technical and scientific data,” said
Dr. Salvatore Alesci, PhRMA’s vice president of scientific affairs.
“A typical new drug application may run 100,000 pages or more. That
information helps to determine the safety and effectiveness of new
medicines and allows the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to
approve treatments.”
Dr. Alesci stressed that biopharmaceutical companies “take great
care” to protect patients involved in the trials of new
medications. “All clinical trials,” he said, “involve a carefully
controlled protocol plan to identify appropriate participants. And
all trials are regulated by the FDA and must be approved by an
Institutional Review Board, which is an independent committee of
physicians, community advocates and others, to help make sure a
trial is conducted ethically.”
Clinical trial status reports must be submitted at least
annually to IRB scrutiny after a trial has begun.
The research facilities in Illinois that have conducted or are
conducting clinical trials of new medications include:
- Carle Cancer Center, Urbana.
- Elmhurst Memorial Hospital,
Elmhurst.
- Swedish-American Regional Cancer
Center, Rockford.
- Southern Illinois University School of
Medicine, Springfield.
- University of Chicago Medical Center,
Chicago.
- OSF St. Francis Medical Center,
Peoria.
- St. John’s Hospital and Memorial
Medical Center at Prairie Heart Cooperative, Springfield.
- Northwestern University Feinberg School
of Medicine, Chicago.
- Crossroads Cancer Center,
Effingham.
- Southern Illinois University
Hematology/Oncology, Centralia.
- Rush University Medical Center,
Chicago.
- Decatur Memorial Hospital Cancer Care
Institute, Decatur.
- Midwestern Regional Medical Center,
Zion.
The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA)
represents the country’s leading pharmaceutical research and
biotechnology companies, which are devoted to inventing medicines
that allow patients to live longer, healthier, and more productive
lives. PhRMA companies are leading the way in the search for new
cures. PhRMA members alone invested an estimated $49.4 billion in
2010 in discovering and developing new medicines. Industry-wide
research and investment reached a record $67.4 billion in 2010.
Find PhRMA Online:
- Website – http://www.phrma.org
- facebook – www.facebook.com/PhRMA
- Blog – www.phrma.org/catalyst
- Twitter – www.Twitter.com/PhRMA and
www.Twitter.com/PhRMApress
- YouTube –
www.youtube.com/PhRMApress
For information on how innovative medicines save lives, visit:
http://www.innovation.org
For information on the Partnership for Prescription Assistance,
visit: http://www.pparx.org
For information on ensuring the flow of medicines during
public health emergencies, visit
http://www.rxresponse.org