The latest data on Advanced Therapy clinical trials has been released by the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult recently (March 2022), showing that the UK was delivering 12% of the total ATMP clinical trials globally1.
There is continued steady growth from 2017 to 2021 with the latest full-year having 168 trials ongoing versus 154 in 2020. It is likely that Covid has played a part in the numbers, both preventing some trials from closing but also reducing the number of new trials being initiated.
Given that the UK accounts for 3.8% of the total global clinical trial activity for 20212, the data for advanced therapies demonstrates the UK is being seen worldwide as a good place to run these challenging trials. The UK is now the biggest cluster of Cell and Gene therapy companies outside the US3.
The UK has significantly invested in advanced therapies, with having the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult to actively co-ordinate and support activity in the sector as well as building the skills through the ATSTN apprenticeships scheme and the Advanced Therapy Treatment Centre Programme working to accelerated adoption of ATMPs within the NHS.
There is still a big challenge ahead for ATMPs, given the number of medicines expected to seek and potentially receive marketing approval will increase dramatically over the coming years4. Both regulators will need the skills to adequately review these applications and hospitals then require staff and infrastructure to be able to effectively deliver these medicines to patients.
Advanced therapies offer potential life-changing opportunities for patients and many show great promise in the clinic. As medicines, however, they can be challenging to develop, and expert guidance should be sought to successfully navigate the pathway from the bench through to bedside.
Boyds have significant expertise in supporting companies in the development of ATMPs, having worked on 7 of the 20 medicines that have been approved in the EU and US with many more progressing through clinical trials currently. To find out more about how Boyds can help you progress your idea into an ATMP for patient use, contact a member of the team.
——-
(1) https://ct.catapult.org.uk/clinical-trials-database
(2) https://www.clinicaltrialsarena.com/marketdata/uk-accounts-for-3-8-share-of-global-clinical-trial-activity-in-2021/
(3) https://www.bioindustry.org/news-listing/guest-blog-state-of-the-uk-cell-and-gene-therapy-industry-in-2021.html
(4) https://ct.catapult.org.uk/sites/default/files/publication/National%20Cell%20and%20Gene%20Therapy%20Vision%20for%20the%20UK.pdf
