New Case Studies Reveal Real-World Experience with Quality by Design (QbD)

Organizations are gaining experience using CTTI’s Quality by Design (QbD) recommendations to design and conduct better clinical trials. CTTI today announced four new QbD case studies, adding to its robust QbD toolkit. Three of the case studies are also now featured in CTTI’s recently-announced Building Better Clinical Trials: A Case Study Exchange resource.

The case studies provide an in-depth look at real-word implementation of QbD principles by:

  • Alexion, a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing medicines for rare diseases, applied QbD principles early in study design to build a streamlined, simple protocol for a global Phase III trial on a tight timeline.
  • An investigator at the Duke Clinical Research Institute applied QbD principles to thoughtfully and strategically design a 1,000 patient, multicenter trial that can be largely executed remotely.
  • The Medicines Company (now part of Novartis), a small pharma company that applied QbD principles with two collaborators to plan a 5-year trial that is already seeing faster-than-expected recruitment.
  • University of Oxford’s Clinical Trial Service Unit & Epidemiological Studies Unit (CTSU) followed a QbD approach in planning and conducting a streamlined, mail-based trial that enrolled over 15,000 participants.

QbD is not a checklist, rather it is a common sense approach in which stakeholders consider: (1) what aspects of a trial are critical to generating reliable data and providing appropriate protection of research participants (“critical to quality” factors); and, (2) what strategies and actions will effectively and efficiently support quality in these critical areas.

These new case studies not only describe the critical-to-quality factors for each trial, and how they were addressed, but also provide tangible strategies and examples for how other organizations can implement such an approach.

This news comes on the heels of CTTI announcing:

  • New resources for the adoption of a QbD approach – including a QbD Maturity Model, Metrics Framework, Implementation Guide, and Documentation Tool – at the end of 2020; and
  • Building Better Clinical Trials: A Case Study Exchange, announced in March 2021; three of the case studies announced today will be included in this resource.

Want to be featured on Building Better Clinical Trials: A Case Study Exchange?

If you are part of an organization that has used any of CTTI’s recommendations or tools and would like to be featured on the site, we may be able to include your story.

By sharing your experience, you can showcase your organization’s success while providing helpful information that will benefit other organizations and facilitate collaboration and knowledge sharing across the research community.

Please reach out to Karisa Merrill to learn more.

Recording Now Available: CTTI Releases New Resources for Adoption of a Quality by Design Approach

recording is now available of the public webinar held on Thurs., Nov. 12 to launch CTTI’s new resources for implementing a Quality by Design (QbD) approach to clinical trials. The webinar was led by Greg Pennock, EMD Serono; David Rodin, Amici Clinical Research; Karlin Schroeder, Parkinson’s Foundation; Ansalan Stewart, FDA; and Steve Young, CluePoints.

“We have worked with leaders and all stakeholders across the clinical trials ecosystem to develop new resources that can help research organizations appropriately plan and design clinical trial protocols by implementing, and thus demonstrating the value of Quality by Design,” said CTTI Executive Director Pamela Tenaerts, MD, MBA. “These new tools aim to help researchers implement QbD into their trial – an efficient approach that will help them focus on what matters most in their trial and proactively address important risks to patient safety and the credibility of trial results.”

The specific resources that CTTI released include:

  • QbD Maturity Model: This self-assessment tool can be used by organizations to assess their current implementation of QbD, and to identify a desired future state.
  • Metrics Framework: This QbD Metrics Framework provides nine example metrics that can help key stakeholders in clinical research organizations to self-evaluate QbD implementation and guide continuous improvement efforts.
  • Implementation Guide: This resource helps study teams plan and evaluate their implementation of QbD for an individual clinical trial, and is intended to serve as a guide to key elements of QbD that will often be important to incorporate in trial planning and execution.
  • Documentation Tool: This tool helps study teams capture and communicate decisions about what is critical to quality and how the most important risks will be addressed.

CTTI’s QbD toolkit serves as a one-stop-shop for any individual or organization looking to implement QbD, and may help meet the anticipated new guideline for ICH E8(r1), which is expected to be finalized in 2021 and emphasizes a QbD approach to trial design.

Both the webinar and the new resources can be found on the CTTI website.

CTTI to Release New Resources for Adoption of a Quality by Design Approach During Nov. 12 Webinar

CTTI will host a public webinarAccelerating Evidence Generation: New CTTI Resources for Implementing a QbD Approach to Clinical Trials, on Thurs., Nov. 12.

“We have worked with leaders and all stakeholders across the clinical trials ecosystem to develop new resources that can help research organizations appropriately plan and design clinical trial protocols by implementing, and thus demonstrating the value of Quality by Design,” said CTTI Executive Director Pamela Tenaerts, MD, MBA. “These new tools aim to help researchers implement QbD into their trial – an efficient approach that will help them focus on what matters most in their trial and proactively address important risks to patient safety and the credibility of trial results.”

The specific resources that CTTI will release include:

  • QbD Maturity Model: This self-assessment tool can be used by organizations to assess their current implementation of QbD, and to identify a desired future state.
  • Metrics Framework: This QbD Metrics Framework provides nine example metrics that can help key stakeholders in clinical research organizations to self-evaluate QbD implementation and guide continuous improvement efforts.
  • Implementation Guide: This resource helps study teams plan and evaluate their implementation of QbD for an individual clinical trial, and is intended to serve as a guide to key elements of QbD that will often be important to incorporate in trial planning and execution.
  • Documentation Tool: This tool helps study teams capture and communicate decisions about what is critical to quality and how the most important risks will be addressed.

These new resources expand CTTI’s existing QbD toolkit, which serves as a one-stop-shop for any individual or organization looking to implement QbD, and may help meet the anticipated new guideline for ICH E8(r1), which is expected to be finalized in 2021 and emphasizes a QbD approach to trial design.

The free public webinar will begin at noon EST on Thurs., Nov. 12 and will feature the following presenters:

  • Greg Pennock, EMD Serono
  • David Rodin, Amici Clinical Research
  • Karlin Schroeder, Parkinson’s Foundation
  • Ansalan Stewart, FDA
  • Steve Young, CluePoints