Diversity in Clinical Trials-Why is it so important?

Diversity is usually being discussed in terms of social impact, however, there is growing evidence that it can be a significant factor in drug development and patient treatment as well. In clinical trials, the equal representation of different ethnic groups can lead to better representation of responsiveness to drugs by the broader population.

Before a new drug is being released to the public, it needs to be tested to patients during clinical trials. All data collected from clinical trials are indicators of the drug’s efficiency and safety. The new drug should be approved by the applicable regulatory authorities before being released to the market. Therefore, it is understandable that if a drug is being tested in limited groups, the responsiveness to it may vary when given to the wide public. The lack of diversity in patient population at clinical trial recruitment can be critical to public health.

In order to address this issue and allow transparency and clarity, the FDA frequently releases some statistical reports for novel drugs. These reports (known as Drug Trial Snapshots Reports) highlight the need for increased participation of populations that are usually underrepresented in many clinical trials as a lot of the drugs are being tested in white populations.

As the advancements in drug development and the need for new insights are growing, the gaps in the representation of diverse populations need to be addressed in order to make medicines widely effective and understand how different populations respond to the same treatments.

At The CLINICAL TRIAL Company Group, we believe in diversity in everything we do and we are committed to continuing to support diversity in order to create equal patient care for everyone.