Comparator Drug Sourcing

MARKET OVERVIEW

Global Comparator Sourcing Market: $1.02 billion in 2022E​

Global CAGR: Approx. 7.5–7.8 percent (2021–2026)

• The global market is expected to be at $1.02 billion in 2022 and will grow at a CAGR of 7.5–7.8 percent between 2021 and 2026

• Emerging countries in Eastern Europe and Asia Pacific have been evolving in providing comparators and clinical trial supplies, which can cater to the client needs across the globe. Sourcing from emerging countries provide value for the product at better pricing

• At the same time, global players are reaching small markets by expanding their network with distributors/logistics players, who can deliver to regions with fewer supply base

Global Market Size and Growth Forecast: Global Comparator Market

• The CTS market will grow at a CAGR of around 7.5–7.8 percent between 2021 and 2026. Comparators as a service hold approximately 8-10 percent of the CTS market and spend wise occupy 50 percent of the sponsors CTS budget, thus making it one of the major categories to focus so as to reduce cost and time associated with supply delays.

• Studies being conducted in remote locations and demand for better supply capabilities are driving the market while factors such as shorter shelf life of biologics, differences in sourcing for biosimilars as against branded drugs, counterfeit of comparators restrain the market and force stringent regulatory actions.

Cost Drivers and Cost Structure

• Cost of the drug occupies the major share of pie, attributing to the reality of costly innovator drugs, which can be reduced by procuring cost-effective comparators from emerging markets, like India and China.

• Proactive demand planning in fluctuating patient enrollment while sourcing comparators can reduce destructions costs and shortage of the required quantity.

Market Trends

• The COVID-19 pandemic has created the need for automation, but also has resulted in 5-10 percent dip in the industry. This may be due to industries working with limited workforce

• To improve efficiency in clinical trial processes, to save valuable resources, pharma is automating clinical trial supplies process including sourcing of comparators that includes adopting new technologies in packaging and labelling, printing, use of IRT and RTSM and integrating the solutions for efficient clinical operations

Use of IRT/RTSM

• Industry is moving to Integrate IRT systems with EDC to enhance visibility in clinical operations and flow of clinical supply

• IRT provides access to patient data and on time delivery of drugs to the patient, which increases the efficiency of trial and reduces the cost to trial (reduces overages).

• Integrating IRT with real-time monitoring devices will increase the flexibility and make it easy for investigators to monitor patients in remote location.

• Suppliers are actively moving to adopt digital data collection from paper based process.

AI & Block Chain Technology

• Applying AI to comparator sourcing will increase operational efficiency and reduces the trial cost by reducing the overages of sourcing

• Implementing new strategies for waste reduction, including IRT and predictive AI

• A clinical supply chain management company developed logistics software platform that uses EDC and IRT to actively monitor clinical supply consumption, patient timelines and supply kit expiration

• Block Chain is being implemented in pharma procurement supply chain financial services platform to improve efficiency, transparency, and financial operations

• In Africa, mass serialization and blockchain tech(assigning an ID for a product and saving as an asset in the blockchain) is being adapted to reduce counterfeit and illegal supply of drugs

eLabels & Smart Packaging

• Integration of technologies, such as eLabels and smart packaging in clinical trial supplies, will increase the real-time monitoring (updating the information of dose, time to take medication, change in protocol number - eLabels) and increase patient adherence to the treatment (smart labels & packaging).

Shift towards biologics

• Focus on precision medicine, gene therapies, and oncology therapeutics has significantly contributed to the complexity of bio samples logistics.

• This has led to increased need for robust and sophisticated cold storage and cold chain supply capabilities with suppliers constantly innovating to fill the gap

Unmanned aircrafts/Drones in clinical trial supplies

• Drone technology in clinical trial supplies allows Just-In-Time and Direct to Patient approaches where pharma can distribute medication based on the requirement and usage. This reduces the wastage of trial supplies.

• A global player has partnered to work on a pilot project to deliver trial supplies to the facilities and also Direct to home kits