Neil Thomas, partner and head of health care and life sciences for EMEA at Infosys Consulting, discusses the three tech-enabled R&D opportunities to drive cost-effective transformation that are still missing in the life sciences industry.
Key insights:
- There are several opportunities to drive efficiencies within innovation in the pharma and life sciences industry that have not yet been recognised or addressed.
- Blockchain technology can address some of the data challenges associated with managing vast sets of clinical trial data, by ensuring that patient data is protected and anonymised whilst providing greater transparency.
- Combining big data and AI with clinical trials and personalised medicine would reduce cost of drug development and time required to bring a drug to market.
- 3D printing technology can support the development of small-batch medication, allowing for the fast development of prototypes and custom medications for individual patient.
The pharmaceutical manufacturing and life sciences industry is in a state of significant disruption, and subsequent transformation. The fallout from Covid, combined with supply chain and global geopolitical challenges, plus the reality of climate change, has caused higher costs, difficult operating conditions, and market flux for the entire industry. However, these threats also run alongside an explosion of technological advancement.