Healthy Skepticism Library item: 14007

Warning: This library includes all items relevant to health product marketing that we are aware of regardless of quality. Often we do not agree with all or part of the contents.

Publication type: Journal Article

Mayor S.
Cancer charity starts research programme with drug "borrowed" from industry
BMJ 2008 May 24; 336:(7654):1155
http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/extract/336/7654/1155-c?etoc

Full text:

The charity Cancer Research UK announced this week that it has started work on its first clinical research programme in a new partnership arrangement that enables it to “borrow” candidate drugs that have been shelved by drug companies so it can further explore their potential.

The cancer research charity and its commercial arm, Cancer Research Technology, is starting the programme with the clinical development of a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, AZD0424, provided by the drug company AstraZeneca.

Under the terms of the agreement, which is called a clinical development partnership, the charity will conduct early clinical trials at no cost to the company. If the drug looks promising, the company retains the option to develop and market the drug, but the charity will get a share of any resulting revenue (BMJ 2006;332:1112; doi:10.1136/bmj.332.7550.1112).

Dr Keith Blundy, chief executive of Cancer Research Technology (CRT), said: “The signing of our . . .