Mariëtte van Huijstee, Irene Schipper (Editors) | Published by Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations, Salud y Fármacos, Centre for Studies in Ethics and Rights | February 2011
An exploratory study on outsourcing of clinical trials by pharmaceutical companies to contract research organisations in nontraditional trial regions. The report is based on research conducted in India, Argentina, Brazil and Peru, and combined with interviews with pharmaceutical companies and clinical trial experts. The research experiences demonstrate that the pharmaceutical sector is generally not transparent, which hinders the definitive answering of the research questions. Nevertheless, the secondary and interview data collected in India, Argentina, Brazil and Peru provides some valuable insights into the way the CRO sector is developing in these countries. Furthermore, the report demonstrates that pharmaceutical companies have elaborate systems in place to manage their supply chain responsibility, although their functioning cannot be independently verified.)