Partnering expands the breadth and depth of services offered by The Netherlands-based contract research organisations (CRO). Both CROs have expertise in cardiology, are geographically close and have similar backgrounds which give academic links and access to new technologies.
Using these links to academia the companies can provide more advanced cardiovascular trial services than other CROs, Mark Neijssel, team leader account management and marketing services at Cardialysis, told Outsourcing-Pharma.
For instance, through its academic links Cardialysis accesses novel imaging modalities at an early stage of their development. Cardialysis is involved with the implementation and validation of these imaging techniques for use in cardiovascular clinical trials.
An example of this process is adoption of optical coherence tomography (OCT) by Cardialysis. OCT uses near-infrared light to provide micrometre-resolution, three-dimensional images. Through close links to the Thorax Center of Erasmus MC in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, Cardialysis became one of the first CROs to implement OCT.
Sticares InterACT is the contract research division of the Sticares Cardiovascular Research Institute and benefits from this link to the academic environment.
Benefits of partnering
Forming the strategic collaboration brings together complementary service offerings to extend the support both CROs can provide to clients.
For example, Cardialysis has medical monitoring capabilities in a number of European countries. However, large trials can need pan-European or global monitoring and consequently Cardialysis, and its clients, will benefit from capabilities Sticares InterACT has in this area.
Likewise, collaborating will enhance the core laboratory and statistic services Sticares InterACT can source for clients. Cardialysis also has expertise in web-based clinical event adjudication and data management.
“The synergy resulting from this collaboration offers sponsors concrete and exceptional advantages”, Karen Keukelaar, chief operating officer of Sticares InterACT, said in a press statement.