Of the nearly 7,000 clinical programs reported in 2022, 43% are in oncology – signaling the tremendous need for and promise of new cancer treatments. At the same time, small and mid-size biotech companies account for 75% to 80% of all drugs currently in development.
Brian Abbott, M.D., is senior director of Medical Affairs at the specialized Clinical Research Organization (CRO) Allucent. Here he discusses why dedicated support is important in order to help smaller biotechs bring new cancer treatments to light in today’s complex landscape – and how to deliver the value these companies need to succeed.
Why as an oncologist did you decide to get into clinical development?
I transitioned from clinical practice into research and drug development because I wanted to use my expertise to help more people. Working in clinical development, I can help increase the chances of successfully delivering potentially life-changing and life-saving treatments to whole communities of cancer patients as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Similarly, my reason for working at a CRO that’s focused on the smaller biotech sector is because this is where I feel I can have the greatest impact. The breakthrough science coming from small and mid-size biotech companies today is unprecedented, and could be revolutionary for the oncology field and the millions of people affected by cancer around the world. At the same time, many smaller biotechs don’t have in-house teams or the specialized expertise needed to successfully navigate the drug development pathway.
Having dedicated experts to help plan and execute clinical development is particularly important in an area with complex indications and modalities like oncology where, often, no previous road map exists. Also, the increasing number of new combination treatments in development is very exciting, but brings additional complexity to designing clinical studies. Today, I specialize in Phase 1-3 trials involving targeted therapy, immuno-oncology, and genomic sequencing – so I’m able to use my expertise to help advance some of the most rapidly evolving science occurring in the field.
How do you bring value to your biotech partners, and why is this so important in today’s environment?
Smaller biotech companies are under increasing pressure to reach key development milestones on time and on budget in order to secure their next round of funding and move their compounds forward. In an area like oncology where there’s a lot of uncharted territory and clinical development plans have to be highly customized, successfully doing this requires experience-based insights to inform effective strategies and planning. By bringing deep oncology expertise and a holistic vantage point across the drug development continuum we can help sponsors avoid costly missteps, anticipate evolving requirements and find the most effective and efficient path forward for their groundbreaking science.
At the clinical stage, this may include employing things like protocol optimization to help build efficient clinical study designs that maximize a study’s value while balancing cost investments from the outset. And, through our decentralized clinical trial (DCT) offering, Allucent Patient Direct Trials, we help smaller companies design and execute more patient-focused trials to realize the efficiencies of a DCT approach. Given the complexity of oncology clinical studies, uptake of DCT approaches has been considerably slower than in other areas of research, but that’s starting to change. A highly-customized, well-designed DCT that accounts for both operational and regulatory considerations can help decrease patient drop-out rates, increase engagement, and improve data quality and speed – all critical factors for effective and efficient oncology research. Those are just two examples, but I think they underscore why it’s so important to offer a truly integrated approach that draws upon cross-functional expertise to meet clients’ distinct needs.
What’s more, to deliver value for smaller biotechs, you have to be hands-on in both strategic planning and tactical execution – working as partners toward one shared mission. Some of these companies may have just one or two molecules, and no approved products generating revenue to fuel their research, so the stakes are really high – not just for smaller biotech companies themselves, but also for the patients we all serve.
What led you to oncology initially, and what motivates you in the work you’re doing now?
I didn’t recognize it at the time, but looking back my grandfather’s cancer had a tremendous impact on my path. He was diagnosed with atypical chronic myeloid leukemia (aCML) when I was young. The prognosis for aCML was really grim with a very short life expectancy, particularly back then. But miraculously, my grandfather lived for 40 years following this diagnosis. It wasn’t until much later that I realized how remarkable that was, and I think that ultimately influenced my decision to go to medical school. Later, his hematologist was one of my professors, and talking to her about what they accomplished and how surprising it was that he survived for that long prompted my decision to go into hematology oncology. I wanted to understand how my grandfather had managed to beat the odds for so long and help others with cancer live better, healthier, longer lives too.
Of course, that’s just one story. I think it’s fair to say that we’ve all been touched by cancer in some way, with far too many friends and family lost. In my work, I get to be part of a team that’s advancing cutting-edge treatments to help change that for future generations – maybe even preventing or curing cancers all together one day. I can’t think of anything more motivating than that. Based on the caliber and pace of innovation I witness every day, I’m very optimistic about what lies ahead