In advance of the launch of the new EudraVigilance System, on 22 November 2017, the EMA has published (on 5 July 2017) a 29 page Q&A, which is a summary of the broad ranging pre-launch questions submitted by stakeholders and the EMA’s answers. Answers have been kept succinct, with URL links to any further relevant guidance. The document is split into separate topics, including: Eudravigilance organisation and user registration; Reporting to National Competent Authorities in the EEA; and Technical Questions, with an index and a useful glossary of terms at the beginning of the guide. The Q&A will be updated regularly. The EMA recommends that the Q&A be treated as a first reference point for queries, before users contact the Agency’s service desk.
Updated first-in-man guideline
By Jackie Mulryne on
Posted in Clinical Trials, EMA
On 20 July 2017, the EMA published the updated guideline on first-in-man (also known as phase I) clinical trials. First-in-man trials often carry the greatest risks, and have been the ones that generate the biggest headlines when they have gone wrong, for example the Phase I trial in France by Bial-Portela & CA SA in 2016. The new guideline, which applies not only to first-in-man trials, but also to all ‘early phase clinical trials’ that generate initial knowledge on tolerability, safety, pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics, aims to ensure such trials are conducted as safely as possible, and assists sponsors in the transition from non-clinical to early clinical development.
Consultation on serious breaches of clinical trial protocol
By Jackie Mulryne on
Posted in Clinical Trials, EMA
Under the new Clinical Trials Regulation 536/2014/EU, it is now a requirement for the sponsor of a clinical trial to report to the regulatory authorities a serious breach of the Regulation or to the clinical trial protocol (Article 52). A serious breach, in this context, is defined as “a breach likely to affect to a significant degree the safety and rights of a subject or the reliability and robustness of the data generated in the clinical trial“. This requirement is currently contained in the legislation of some Member States, such as in the UK (Regulation 29A Medicines for Human Use (Clinical Trials) Regulations 2004/1031), but was not previously included in Directive 2001/20/EC or in ICH GCP (although a sponsor should list all significant protocol non-compliances in the clinical study report). This is, therefore, the first time that there is such a requirement in all EU countries.
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Update on personalised medicines: Predictive biomarkers
By Libby Amos-Stone & Ian Dodds-Smith on
We have previously reported on the European Medicine Agency’s (EMA) increased focus on the area of personalised medicines. The original blog post can be found here.
The EMA and the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) has now released for consultation a concept paper on predictive biomarker-based assay development in the context of drug development and lifecycle. The use of predictive biomarkers is an aspect of personalised medicine used to decide treatment or dose selection.
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Innovative approaches to paediatric drug development
By Jackie Mulryne & Libby Amos-Stone on
On 6 July 2017, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced a joint proposal to promote the use of innovative approaches to paediatric drug development. The proposal focuses on paediatric Gaucher disease, but the intention is for the principles underlying the so-called “strategic collaborative approach” to be extended to other areas of development for rare paediatric diseases.
The collaborative approach was considered necessary as, given the limited number of patients with Gaucher disease, identifying multiple candidate target products, and running multiple clinical trials, may actually hinder the development of an effective treatment. Continue Reading Innovative approaches to paediatric drug development
UK Supreme Court broadens patent protection
By Kathy Harford on
Posted in Patent
The UK Supreme Court has overturned existing case law to, for the first time, formally recognise a “doctrine of equivalents”, resulting in a broader scope of patent protection under UK law. This new approach is more patentee-friendly and brings the UK into closer alignment with courts elsewhere in Europe and in the US.
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Advocate General’s opinion on software as medical devices
By Jackie Mulryne on
Posted in Medical Devices, software
On 28 June, the Advocate General of the Court of Justice of the European Union gave his opinion on the SNITEM and Philips France case against France. In this case, the Conseil d’Etat in France asked whether a particular software programme intended to be used by doctors to support prescribing decisions falls within the definition of medical device as provided by Directive 93/42/EEC (Medical Devices Directive).
Continue Reading Advocate General’s opinion on software as medical devices
NICE introduces META Tool
By Adela Williams, Jackie Mulryne & Libby Amos-Stone on
Posted in NICE
On Monday, 3 July 2017, the scientific advice service within the National Institute for health and Care Excellence (NICE) launched its Medtech Early Technology Assessment (META) Tool.
The META Tool is an online service that provides developers of medical devices, diagnostics, digital health interventions, and medical apps with a framework to help them identify potential gaps in the available evidence, and prepare for discussions with investors, health technology assessment organisations (including NICE itself), and payers.
Update on personalised medicines
By Libby Amos-Stone & Ian Dodds-Smith on
Traditional medicine applies the same treatment approach to all patients affected by a disease (‘one size fits all’). However, we are all unique. Our health is determined by our inherited genetic differences combined with our lifestyles and other environmental factors. Personalised medicines are medicines that are targeted to individual patients based on their genetic make-up.
Variants in our genetic code can also be used to predict the potential for adverse drug reactions. For example, the hyper-sensitivity experienced by certain patients to the HIV drug Abacavir has been found to be linked to a particular genetic variant, allele HLA-B5701. The requirement that patients take a test to ensure this allele is absent before being given Abacavir has greatly reduced the incidence of hyper-sensitivity.
Since 2011, personalised medicine has been on the agenda of the European Commission, which has committed two billion Euros of health research funding to the cause. Personalised medicine has been defined by the European Council as a “Medical model using characterisation of individuals’ phenotypes and genotypes or tailoring the right therapeutic strategy for the right person at the right time, and to determine the predisposition to disease and/or deliver timely and targeted prevention, and it relates to the broader concept of patient-centred care, which takes into account that, in general, healthcare systems need to better respond to patient needs.”