Under the collaboration, terms of which were not provided, Spaulding will perform the electrocardiographic studies required by Frontage’s clients at its facility in West Bend, Wisconsin.
Frontage spokesman Matt Harrington told Outsourcing-pharma.com that demand for centralised cardiac studies was the key driver for the partnership, citing a 2010 study by the Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development (CSDD) as evidence.
“[According to the study] nearly 100 per cent of industry respondents believe central cardiac labs are accurate and efficient, yet only 33 per cent of all ECGs are collected centrally using a Core Lab, resulting in higher hidden costs.”
“Clearly, there is need right now for increased adoption of Centralized Cardiac Safety. While Frontage had considered developing its own capabilities to meet the need, it chose to partner with Spaulding Clinical to provide this service more rapidly and with the highest possible quality.”
Harrington added that increasing US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requirements for data on QT prolongation are also driving pharmaceutical industry demand for this type of service.
In return, Pennsylvania-based Frontage will provide bioanalytical method development, sample processing, formulation and trial supply services for Spaulding.
Additionally, one of Frontage’s two sites in China, located in Zhengzhou and Changchun, will be available to will be available to Spaulding’s customers.
Partnerships
The partnership with Frontage fits with the expansion strategy Spaulding has employed in recent months. In late August the US firm teamed up with Biocon’s India-based unit Clinigene International in a deal focused on the latter firm’s BA/BE testing, lab and bioanalytical services offering.
A few weeks earlier Spaulding used a similar approach to boost its presence in Europe, forming a partnership with French contract research organisation Eurofins Optimed Clinical Research.