KEY POINTS:
New Zealanders may soon gain access to cutting edge medicines free of charge, so long as they don't mind acting as the proverbial guinea-pig.
Dr Shaun Holt has launched science management organisation Clinicanz in an effort to attract a slice of the multibillion-dollar pharmaceutical trials industry.
Globally pharmaceutical
clinical trials are a $100 billion-plus industry, of which New Zealand's share is $20 million.
Talk of drug trials often conjures images of medical disasters, such as New Zealander David Oakley who gained fame as the "Elephant Man" due to the violent reaction he had during a drug trial he was part of in Britain.
But the trials Clinicanz hopes to attract will not be for drugs at the beginning of their development tests, where participants are paid to test the safety of drugs.
Rather they will be what are known as phase three and four trials, involving drugs which have already passed safety testing. It will also include drugs widely available overseas but awaiting registration in New Zealand.
Patients stand to benefit from free access to the latest medicines, free doctors' visits and even free transport to their appointments.
"The risks are absolutely minimal at this stage of drug trials. They've been well-researched, probably for around 10 years already," Dr Holt told NZPA.
"But with any medication, whether it's in a trial or not, there's always a slight risk and patients are fully informed of what those are."
Doctors gain access to a new and often lucrative source of income as well as the chance to upskill themselves and their staff through being involved in the latest research.
Dr Holt planned to recruit about 40 doctors in Auckland, Wellington, Tauranga and Rotorua, which he said would provide access to around 100,000 patients.
"That will give us the critical mass to attract companies ... with those numbers we will be able to put 300-500 on a trial and suddenly New Zealand is a very attractive place."
Clinicanz will be open to any drugs which would be administered by a GP - covering most ailments outside of cancer.
Researched Medicines Industry Association chief executive Ken Shirley said New Zealand enjoyed a vibrant clinical trials industry a decade ago.
"We had a $100 million investment in pharmaceutical (research and development) mostly in clinical trials. Today that's less than $20 million so we're a fifth of what we were 10 years ago, and still shrinking."
Rotorua GP Dr Mike Williams was one of the first to sign on with Clinicanz and agreed that practices which offered staff the chance to be involved in research would be seen as more desirable by medical professionals.
"From a GP's point of view it's using some of your skills in a slightly different way. It's something that's new and a bit more exciting that sparks your brain cells a little bit."
If Clinicanz succeeded in attracting clinical trials Dr Holt did not expect the extra business for GPs and laboratories would mean delays for patients.
"We're totally under-used in New Zealand and we should be doing a heck of a lot more."
Dr Williams was less convinced there would be no strain, but said it was something the industry needed.
"It's a lot more work, but nobody will mind working hard when we're getting paid to do it."
"I think if you want general practice to be sustainable for the long-term future then GPs have to look at other sources of income."
While most big pharmaceutical companies were based in Europe and America, Dr Holt said they had no qualms about conducting trials around the globe.
While India, Eastern Europe and South America were growing in popularity as trials hosts, he believed New Zealand could be a more attractive option.
"We're English-speaking, we've got a good-sized population, GPs have very good electronic databases of their patients.
"We have, in some ways it's a shame to say, an under-treated population in things like asthma and emphysema and diabetes," he said.
Another advantage New Zealand has is its position in the Southern Hemisphere, which would enable companies to test medications for seasonal ailments such as allergies, asthma and flu all year round.
Dr Holt said the first big push to attract drug companies was due in October, when he headed to major medical conferences in Las Vegas and Berlin.
- NZPA