Call for EU regulators to get tougher on pediatric clinical trials for cancer drugs

18 February 2014

Children with cancer are being denied potentially life-saving drugs because European Union rules are allowing companies to trial some drugs only in adults, leading cancer experts warn today.

Changes to how EU rules are implemented could allow children access to more potential cancer drugs which have currently only been tested in adults by making it more difficult for pharma companies to avoid testing them in under-18s.

Under the EU current system, pharma companies often gain exemptions from carrying out expensive testing of cancer drugs in patients under the age of 18, even where a drug’s mechanism of action suggests it could work in children. As a result there are significant delays in new drugs becoming available for children, and some drugs may never be formally licensed for pediatric use.

This article is accessible to registered users, to continue reading please register for free. A free trial will give you access to exclusive features, interviews, round-ups and commentary from the sharpest minds in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology space for a week. If you are already a registered user please login. If your trial has come to an end, you can subscribe here.

Try before you buy

Free

7 day trial access

Take a Free Trial

All the news that moves the needle in pharma and biotech
Exclusive features, podcasts, interviews, data analyses and commentary from our global network of life sciences reporters.
Receive The Pharma Letter daily news bulletin, free forever.

Become a subscriber

£820

Or £77 per month

Subscribe Now

Unfettered access to industry-leading news, commentary and analysis in pharma and biotech.
Updates from clinical trials, conferences, M&A, licensing, financing, regulation, patents & legal, executive appointments, commercial strategy and financial results.
Daily roundup of key events in pharma and biotech.
Monthly in-depth briefings on Boardroom appointments and M&A news.
Choose from a cost-effective annual package or a flexible monthly subscription

The Pharma Letter is an extremely useful and valuable Life Sciences service that brings together a daily update on performance people and products. It’s part of the key information for keeping me informed

Chairman, Sanofi Aventis UK

More ones to watch >