Aligning Contemporary Market Research Methods to Facilitate Understanding of the Key Issues and Opportunities in Oncology Drug Development

Current Situation in Oncology and key challenges and opportunity for Pharma

As the number of new molecular entities moving through oncology development continues to rise, alongside the ever-increasing complexities of segmentation and clinical trial design, driven by better understanding of disease processes, the need for drug developers to gain rapid and reliable insight from physicians, patients and key decision-makers has never been greater. Purdie Pascoe is fully equipped to address and unearth some of the most complex and diverse issues in modern cancer drug development and lifecycle management.

There is no escaping the fact that the arrival of checkpoint inhibitors/immune oncology is having a far-reaching impact across multiple oncology indications in terms of broadening treatment options, improving outcomes and lifting commercial aspirations. In some high incidence cancers, such as NSCLC, the landscape is crowded and competitive yet nuanced, and across all indications developers are getting clever and more sophisticated with the positioning of their assets. 

In all of these scenarios, carefully designed senior led primary market research can help provide a valuable handle on what is actually happening in the clinic – what factors are driving the prescribing decisions in busy and complex markets, how important the role of chemotherapy remains for some indications and to which specific patient types, and, importantly it can help to identify levels of penetration in previously untapped niche areas. However, there are notable differences regarding the clinical development of immune-oncolytics versus other drug classes that need to be considered, including trial endpoints, and it is this pure depth and breadth of therapy area experience and expertise in combination with our senior led commercial judgment that Purdie Pascoe are able to offer to help design and execute on optimal research programme.

Another key issue that is facing drug developers and prescribers relates to the optimal combination and sequencing of the increasing number of options available. Frequently, head-to-head trials are not performed, and data and outcomes need to be extrapolated and interpreted between studies with differing inclusion criteria. Similarly, optimal sequencing is typically not well defined and regardless – with so many new molecules and combinations entering the market – the landscape is too dynamic to make this feasible in the near term. As such subjective views, data interpretation and personal experience are fundamental to prescribers’ decision making. Capturing subjective and emotional drivers of prescribing as well as decisions led by clinical data can be uncovered using high end sophisticated analysis.

Purdie Pascoe has in-depth knowledge and experience in a wide range of solid and hematologic tumours, an array of drug classes from chemotherapeutics including modified cytotoxics through to small molecule targeted therapies, immunotherapy and personalised approaches.  In addition, Purdie Pascoe has awareness and experience in the contemporary issues that relate to oncology drug development, such as biomarker use, patient segmentation, clinical trial design, and the impact of cost controls.

So, how can primary market research help? 

Due to the sheer volume of drug development activity in the cancer field, market research in cancer has increased steadily over the past decade or so. Throughout the product lifecycle, primary MR is vital to inform business decisions: 

1. Early stage market landscaping: exploring unmet needs and evaluating likely uptake of a new product concept. 

2. After proof of concept, scenario planning can provide an essential toolkit for setting and measuring progress against key success factors. 

3. During the clinical development, optimisation of clinical trial design can be achieved by including the “commercial parameters” in clinical trial endpoints which will prove the most persuasive metrics for prescribers when they evaluate new product performance at launch. 

4. In late clinical development and regulatory submission stages, qualitative and/or quantitative scenario modelling to examine likely clinical outcomes and label variations and their impact on commercial success can help to guide tough decisions on product futures. 

5. Positioning and communication research is vital to ensure evidence-based differentiation in the marketplace, particularly where a long-established competitor is to be supplanted or a paradigm-shift in treatment approach is sought.

Across all stages of the product lifecycle, market research in cancer needs to be set into appropriate context, requiring both a sound understanding of market parameters and a comprehensive appreciation of the unique medical setting in which oncologists / cancer haematologists operate. 

Here at Purdie Pascoe we have a suite of instruments to track and monitor brand health, and in combination with our expertise, we provide real deep-rooted interpretation which add commercial context and richness to your insights.  We have conducted in-depth exploratory research from market understanding, potential through to TPP, positioning and BE, but the majority of our work in oncology, as in other areas, is around market understanding, exploring emotional drivers and barriers, demand assessment, tracking launches, ATU and communications.

For more information or to discuss how we can help you, please contact guy.pascoe@purdiepascoe.com