Asia Pacific Key To Speeding Up Drug Development, Says Quintiles VP Anand Tharmaratnam: An Interview With PharmAsia News (Part 2 of 2)
This article was originally published in PharmAsia News
Executive Summary
Helping facilitate the globalization of clinical trials is one of Asia's main contributions in advancing the pharmaceutical industry, says Quintiles Asia Pacific Head of Clinical Development Anand Tharmaratnam, who discussed innovation in the region with PharmAsia News' Australia Bureau. While the shift to outsourcing to Asia may have begun as a cost play, it is not necessarily cheaper on every front now; in fact, some things are more expensive in Asia, such as quality control and shifting blood samples. But outsourcing to Asia is quickly becoming a strategic imperative that builds upon the region's experience and expertise. In part one, Tharmartnam discusses the changing role for contract research organizations in the region, and in part two, he drills down to discuss differences among Asia Pacific countries in terms of drug development.