Blockchain in clinical trials aid pharma companies

Innovative technology enhances transparency, efficiency, and safety in healthcare.

The integration of blockchain technology into clinical trials, supply chain management, and patient consent processes creates a more inclusive, transparent, and participatory process for obtaining consent from participants in clinical trials, according to international law firm Sidley Austin.

Eva von Mühlenen, Senior Advisor and Head of Global Life Sciences team in Switzerland at Sidley, said that blockchain offers a democratised consent structure that significantly enhances participant engagement, data privacy, and the integrity of health data sharing.

Von Mühlenen elaborated on the transformative potential of blockchain in creating a more inclusive, transparent, and participatory process for obtaining consent from participants in clinical trials. 

“So by involving participants more actively and the constant process democratised structure fosters a sense of ownership and going to an end eventually, results in a higher participant in clinical trials,” she said.

She added that the technology addresses the complexities of the modern research landscape, including the secondary use of health data, through its core principles of decentralisation, transparency, security, and efficiency. 

Smart contracts, or self-executing agreements, automate the consent process and allow participants to manage their consent in real-time, thereby fostering a trust-based environment that benefits both participants and companies through high-quality data and more efficient research processes.

Furthermore, von Mühlenen highlighted how blockchain can maintain a tamper-evident record of product information, moving from paper to electronic formats. This transition promises improved accessibility, searchability, and the ability to integrate with the entire electronic healthcare ecosystem.

“In this context, blockchain technology may introduce a system where the respective data is not stored in one single location, but instead distributed across the network,” she said.

The battle against counterfeit medicines and the optimization of supply chain management are also areas where blockchain can make a significant impact. The immutable ledgers of blockchain provide a level of traceability from manufacturing to the end consumer, reducing the risk of counterfeit products entering the market. 

“So from the man you're manufacturing to the end consumer, and this level of traceability makes it of course difficult for counterfeit products to enter the supply chain unnoticed or undetected, and like that significantly can reduce the risk of counterfeit medicines reaching consumers,” von Mühlenen said.

This traceability not only improves patient safety but also leads to cost savings for healthcare systems. Real-time records of product movements and transactions facilitated by blockchain can improve inventory management, streamline recall processes, and enable quicker responses to supply chain disruptions.