IQVIA Collaborates with Friends of Cancer Research

IQVIA is proud to announce its collaboration with Friends of Cancer Research in a cross-industry effort to advance acceptance and drive future uses of real-world evidence (RWE). This research helps confirm that clinical benefits seen for therapies in clinical trials were consistent with the benefits of those treatments within real world settings. RWE comprises dynamic data including assets such as EMR, hospital, pharmacy, and claims sources, as well as genomics, mobile health, and patient reported outcomes. The project is part of a Friends of Cancer Research initiative that is working to demonstrate the application of real-world evidence in oncology research.   

As part of this project, a recent study involving six research centers in the U.S. followed a common protocol to assess real world endpoints among cancer patients, including overall survival, time to next treatment, time to treatment discontinuation, time to progression and progression-free survival. Results from the collaborative project, An Exploratory Analysis of Real-World End Points for Assessing Outcomes Among Immunotherapy-Treated Patients with Advanced Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer, were recently published in JCO Clinical Cancer Informatics.

Researchers used non-identified patient data from assets such as administrative claims and electronic health records to assess real world endpoints and found that they were generally consistent with each other and with outcomes observed in randomized clinical trials.

“While randomized clinical trials are the gold standard to evaluate whether a medical treatment can work, they don’t determine if treatment works for diverse patients outside the clinical setting and within real world situations,” said Nancy Dreyer, chief scientific officer, IQVIA Real World Solutions, and an author of the study report. “IQVIA is excited to be part of this initiative. This important study demonstrates the value of real-world evidence to measure and quantify the comparative benefits and risks of various medical products.”

Researchers said the study’s findings substantiate the validity of using real world data to support decision-making by regulatory agencies and healthcare payers.

“RWE is an important tool for continued learning about treatment outcomes over time," said Dr. Jeff Allen, president and CEO of Friends of Cancer Research. "This collaboration demonstrates how different data sources can reproducibly provide important information on patient populations often excluded from clinical trials.”  

Findings from the project will be presented at this year's Blueprint for Breakthrough Forum.