How Technology Innovations Empower Clinical Research in India

Suresh Ramu is a seasoned business professional and Senior Management expert, with a strong entrepreneurial spirit dedicated to shaping organizations. He advocates for patient-centric, tech-driven healthcare solutions, drawing from his extensive two-decade experience in optimizing Clinical Research.

There were 1988 cancer trials registered in Clinical Trial Registry-India (CTRI) between 2007 and 2021, as per a November 2023 article published in The Lancet. While the number of trials conducted in a given cancer sub type correlated to the incidence, mortality, and five-year prevalence of the respective cancer in India, it was found that head and neck cancer and cervical cancer were under represented in trials as compared with the disease burden.

There is an urgent need for clinical research– not just on cancer, but across the healthcare spectrum –to be better aligned with the country’s healthcare needs. Technology innovations can help address this challenge, while ensuring the availability of clinical trials across geographic regions and underserved populations. In fact, much of the published health research over the last decade demonstrates how digital approaches can improve the design and implementation of clinical trials.

Opportunities galore

In the rapidly evolving landscape of healthcare, clinical research stands as a critical pillar, generating scientific evidence that can significantly influence patient outcomes and the advancement of medical science. However, conducting current trials is often a costly, complex, and prolonged process. Digital technologies and innovations offer opportunities that can lead to viable solutions.

Similarly, the latest Electronic Health Records (EHR) systems with advanced analytics tools make it easier to retrieve and manage patient information. These systems not only enhance the efficiency of research processes, but also improve the accuracy of data, leading to more reliable study outcomes.

Leveraging AI

The convergence of healthcare and technology is increasingly transforming healthcare delivery models worldwide. The availability of multi-modal data, including genomics, economic, demographic, clinical and phenotypic, coupled with technology innovations, such as artificial intelligence (AI), is reshaping the landscape of clinical research by enabling the analysis of vast datasets beyond human capability.

AI algorithms are being successfully deployed to identify patterns and predict outcomes, thereby helping in understanding disease progression and treatment efficacy. For instance, in oncology, AI tools currently assist in early diagnosis and personalised treatment planning by analysing imaging data and genetic information.

Another area where AI is playing a pivotal role is the patient recruitments for clinical trials. By analysing historical data and patient records, AI systems help identify potential participants who meet the precise criteria for specific studies, thereby speeding up the recruitment process and improving the diversity of participants.

Digital technologies can be used not just for recruitment and enrolment of participants in clinical trials, but also for the effective delivery of interventions, data collection, and data management.

Pandemic lessons

The COVID-19 pandemic underscored the importance of remote healthcare services and accelerated innovation in this domain. Telemedicine has not only made healthcare accessible, but also opened new avenues for clinical trials. Remote monitoring technologies have facilitated the continuous assessment of patients’ health statuses without requiring them to visit the trial sites. The technology enables real-time data collection on the patients’ response to treatments, increasing the scope and scale of clinical trials, while ensuring patient safety and comfort.

Another significant stride in the realm of clinical research has been the development of collaborative platforms that enable interoperability between different healthcare systems. These platforms allow researchers across the country to share their findings, collaborate on research projects, and leverage collective intelligence. This not only helps speed up the research process, but also enhances the quality of clinical trials by incorporating comprehensive data and diverse expertise.

The journey ahead

For an industry that has historically been slow to embrace innovation, the pandemic proved to be a strong catalyst. It exposed many of the systemic limitations in the clinical trial research space and urged us to re-evaluate processes and adopt a more ‘patient-centric’ approach.

It’s important to remember though that the integration of technology in clinical research is a journey, not a destination. As we continue to make great strides, the potential for these state-of-the-art technologies to transform clinical research in India is limitless. By actively fostering an environment of innovation and employing cutting-edge technologies, India can lead the charge in advancing clinical research, including drug discovery, improving patient care and treatment outcomes, and, over time, advancing public health.