Funding multinational investigator-initiated clinical studies in Europe: why and how?

Investigator-initiated clinical studies (IICSs), also referred to as non-commercial, academic or independent clinical studies, address important research questions that are usually neglected by industry despite their high societal value. Indeed, industry may direct their focus and resources on studies that will yield results and products that can ultimately generate revenue for the company. Conversely, IICS research questions include (a) refining or getting new indications of available treatments (drug repurposing); (b) optimisation, by comparing various health products or treatment regimens; and (c) innovation, especially for advanced therapies.

Need for and access to health care and medicines: are there gender inequities?

Objective: Differences between women and men in political and economic empowerment, education, and health risks are well-documented. Similar gender inequities in access to care and medicines have been hypothesized but evidence is lacking.

Methods: We analyzed 2002 World Health Survey data for 257,922 adult respondents and 80,932 children less than 5 years old from 53 mostly low and middle-income countries.

The future of HIV prevention: prospects for an effective anti-HIV microbicide.

Topical microbicides are self-administered products for prevention of HIV transmission, and they present one of the most promising strategies for combating the HIV-AIDS epidemic. The development of microbicides is a long and complicated process, with many hurdles that are unique to this class of product, including challenges in product design, in the conduct and design of clinical trials, and in obtaining licensure of a new class of products intended for use almost exclusively in developing countries. Once they have been registered, there are additional challenges to the marketing and distribution of microbicides.