Project Data Sphere (PDS), an online platform sharing clinical trial data for use in cancer research, announced its official opening earlier this week. The goal of the project is to accelerate drug discovery and research to improve the lives of cancer patients around the world.
9 data sets are being used for this project. The companies currently involved are AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Sanofi U.S., Bayer, Celgene, Janssen Research and Development (part of Johnson & Johnson).
Charles Hugh-Jones (Chief Medical Office at Sanofi) and Robert J. Hugin (CEO of Roundtable on Cancer) commented on the new platform yesterday, respectively.
“Using clinical trial datasets collaboratively is a big leap forward in the cancer drug discovery process. 8.2 million people still die of cancer every year while the attrition rate for clinical testing of promising compounds can be as high as 95%. This could become substantially lower once researchers in both academia and industry share clinical trial data. We’re excited to be working with world-class partners like SAS, SAGE Bionetworks, academia, many in industry and importantly patient groups to bring this free resource to researchers globally.”
“Data sharing through initiatives such as the Project Data Sphere initiative has the potential to accelerate the speed with which clinical trials are conducted, improve the efficiency of trial designs and assist with the development of data standards applicable to all cancer types,” said Robert J. Hugin, member, CEO Roundtable on Cancer and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Celgene.”
(Image Credit: Bill Lyon)
