Cytel Blog

Cytel’s COVID-19 Trial Tracker continues to provide real time updates to the status of COVID-19 clinical trials worldwide. Funded by the Gates Foundation, the COVID-19 Trial Tracker uses machine learning technology to ensure that registries across the world feed into the Trial Tracker.

In April 2020, Cytel launched an open-access global COVID-19 Clinical Trial Tracker to help facilitate greater collaboration between researchers, policymakers, clinicians, journalists, philanthropists, and other critical stakeholders. Funded in part by The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, a leader in global health solutions, this live dashboard offers an overview of all the clinical trials taking place in the international effort to tackle the pandemic.

We have been posting regular updates on the clinical development of COVID-19 therapy and vaccines, on Cytel’s Blog page. The following details are based on an updated data search accessed on January 11.

The Cytel COVID-19 Trial Tracker brings you an up to the minute, real time dashboard about COVID-19 trials around the world. This snapshot gives you a quick briefing on the current state of COVID-19 therapy and vaccines development.

An extraordinary amount of global research is underway as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve and spread. As several entities develop curative and preventive responses against COVID-19, alignment with regulatory recommendations is key for developing effective and safe intervention. Moreover, fast regulatory approval will translate into early availability of interventions to address unmet needs.

Continue reading to get an overview of the registered COVID-19 clinical trials landscape, with a story on the special attention received by Hydroxychloroquine treatment.

At the close of May 2020, we have about 500 new trials globally but trends in trial design and choice of therapies tested have largely remained the same. The state of Vaccine Trials though has changed in both number and trial design.

This has been an exciting week for COVID-19 studies. We learned that several Cytel clients who have designed new clinical trials using our East software, are about to begin enrolling. Our subject-matter experts are also heavily involved in designing vaccine trials, as well as offering biometrical support and data management for three vaccine trials that have already begun to enroll.

There are now over 950 trials registered, which means that 250 new trials were registered in the past week.

Only 540 of these are currently recruiting patients. This would suggest that a number of trials are failing to reach recruitment targets. The most successful trials, though, appear to suggest otherwise. They are recruiting at an unprecedented rate.

There are currently 665 trials registered at Cytel’s COVID-19 Trial Tracker, a jump of over 100 trials in the past two weeks. Over 20% of these trials are for chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine, while only 10 of 17 vaccine trials are currently recruiting. Are we collectively prioritizing the correct investigational studies?

Cytel's Weekly Insights takes a closer look into what the data is now telling us. We also examine projected recruitment and completion dates for vaccine trials using two new functionalities: the Cumulative Registration function shows the total number of trials that are ongoing, when they began and when they are projected to end. The Cumulative Recruitment function shows expected enrollment by treatment.

Taken together we get a clearer picture of the journey so far and insight into the complexity of a path toward a vaccine and a cure.