Mack Roach III, MD, professor of radiation oncology, medical oncology and urology, at the University of California, San Francisco, discusses concerns about how tariffs and restrictions on international collaboration could negatively affect cancer research and treatment.
While drugs might not have been a major issue in one specific study, the broader implications are significant.
"We have investigators from [many] parts of the world that are participating in studies. That is necessary if you design a clinical trial. That trial needs to be completed very quickly, because there are constant changes in the landscape. There are new drugs that are coming out all the time,” Roach explains.
“When [we] have a question of, should [we or should we not] use this drug and [we have] defined the populations of patients that we wish to use a particular drug in or a type of treatment…we need to recruit patients quickly, get them on the studies and get the results so we can make the next advance,” he adds.
Tariffs on imported drugs or their components could lead to increased costs, affecting government-funded studies and potentially raising prices for patients and the healthcare system. International clinical trials, which are crucial for rapid progress in cancer treatment, could also be hindered by restrictions on government funding for international studies, drug availability issues, or even slower patient enrollment.
“If we do not have enough investigators, and if we do not have enough patients enrolled, then the accruals will take much longer, and by the time we get halfway through, the study might be obsolete, because newer drugs have come out,” Roach explains. “It is very important to be able to recruit patients quickly and to get the large numbers of patients and to get the results quickly in order for us to move the field forward.”
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