How can society benefit from clinical drug trials conducted in Finland?

The report on the value of pharmaceutical research to society highlights the different ways in which society benefits from the research work of pharmaceutical companies in Finland:

• the value of the treatment received by patients in one clinical drug trial is approximately 1.2 million euros
• the societal value of one clinical drug trial for healthcare is around 10 million euros
• the treatment value of drug trials that started during the years 2018-2023 was 107 million euros per year on average
• the societal value of drug trials which started during 2018-2023 was 880 million euros per year on average

The number of clinical trials conducted in Finland has been decreasing for more than 25 years. At the best, more than 300 new trials per year were initiated and now the number is only about 100. Despite the declining trend, pharma companies offer trials to Finland more than our healthcare is able to conduct.

However, healthcare professionals find the clinical trials important to the organizations:

• 89% of respondents estimate that clinical trials improve the treatment results of patients 
• 67% of respondents estimate that clinical trials improve patients' quality of life
• all respondents would perform significantly more clinical trials if resources did not limit it

The importance of clinical drug trials is much broader than the direct investments they bring. If the healthcare system is unable to start new clinical trials due to lack of resources, patients will not get the health benefits and society will not get the cost benefits. Doctors and nurses don't have time to perform research, and nowadays, healthcare professionals are not willing to use their spare time for research. With the declining trend with clinical trials, Finland may lose billions of euros benefits to the society.

Read the full study here.