Revisiting industry partnerships with the Department of Veterans Affairs

Contract research organizations (CROs) should consider partnering with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) when conducting clinical trials, according to an attendee at the recent Clinical Trial Collabora­tions conference in Boston, Massachusetts. “The atmosphere is right for increasing the number of industry-VA collaborations,” said Dawn McK­enna, executive director of the Bedford VA Research Corporation in Bedford, Massachu­setts. McKenna spent years working in the phar­maceutical research and development industry as well as government and nonprofit areas before taking the helm in Bedford last year.

Megafunds as an avenue to boost drug development

With skyrocketing drug develop­ment costs and increasing pressure on traditional resources, creation of private megafunds to boost drug research seems to be gaining more traction. A recent initiative is an $866 million develop­ment fund established by Mitsui & Co., con­tract researcher Quintiles and other investors.

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