April 2022 • PharmaTimes Magazine • 9
// INDUSTRY NEWS //
Clinical jobs increase as R&D roles experience record growth
A report by specialist recruiters Cpl Life Sciences and data analysts Vacancysoft revealed that the sector experienced a very fruitful 2021 and levels of all new jobs grew by 37% year-on-year in the wake of Brexit. Scientific recruitment for R&D, clinical and management vacancies grew by 70%, 88% and 86% year-on-year, respectively.
Meanwhile, laboratory roles contributed to the majority of new jobs, accounting for 17.3% of total scientific hiring, with over 1,100 vacancies. This represented a 100% year-on-year rise and a 192% boost, compared to pre-pandemic levels. The fastest growth was experienced by hiring for scientific professionals in clinical management (210%), clinical operations (167%) and microbiology (162%).
Yvette Cleland, CEO, Cpl Life Sciences, said: “The UK demonstrated throughout the pandemic how effective it can be when industry, academia, government, charities and the NHS all work together. One of the clearest measures for the achievements of the life sciences sector – one of the dominant knowledge-based economic sectors in Britain – is through the prism of numbers of jobs on the market.”
Community pharmacies save 20,000 lives during vaccination phases
The report cites UK Health Security Agency figures, which estimate that overall the programme prevented as many as 128,000 deaths by 24 September 2021. The figures also estimate that the programme prevented up to 262,000 hospitalisations by 19 September 2021.
NAO is a national public expenditure watchdog and took evidence from the National Pharmacy Association (NPA).
Examining the evidence, NAO highlighted that community pharmacies and GPs went far beyond expectations in delivering the COVID-19 vaccine: 71% of vaccinations were administered by community pharmacies and GPs up to the end of October 2021, against the initial planning assumption of 56%.
NAO’s The rollout of the COVID-19 vaccination programme in England report concluded that ‘national and local partners showed an ability to adapt quickly, for example the rapid shift to deliver more vaccinations through GPs and pharmacies’.
Meanwhile, the NPA calculates that pharmacies saved nearly 20,000 lives up to Autumn 2021 and it is probable that the number is now considerably higher, accounting for the central role played by pharmacies in this winter’s phase of the programme.
HOT & NOT
The SMC has accepted Trodelvy (sacituzumab govitecan) for use in Scotland on the NHS, for the treatment of adults with unresectable locally advanced or metastatic triple-negative breast cancer.
It can be particularly difficult to treat and the metastatic stage of the disease is typically considered incurable. Trodelvy is designed for patients who have received two or more prior lines of systemic therapies and at least one for unresectable locally advanced or metastatic disease.
Oxford Science Enterprises has entered an agreement with Lothbury Property Trust to develop high-specification laboratory and office space. It will provide state-of-the-art research and development facilities in the heart of Oxford city centre.
The 30,000 square ft R&D space is part of a proposed £200m redevelopment of the Clarendon Centre. The redevelopment is expected to begin in 2022, pending approvals. The demand for laboratory space in Oxford is approximately ten times greater than the existing supply.
Novartis and Voyager Therapeutics have announced a partnership to develop gene therapies for neurological disorders.
In a promising step for next-generation gene therapy for neurological diseases, Novartis and Voyager Therapeutics have announced a licence option agreement. The agreement builds on previous successes from Novartis in using emerging technologies to develop first-in-class gene therapies for neurological disorders.
Roche Diagnostics has revealed the launch of its pioneering new molecular laboratory instrument – the cobas 5800 System – throughout the UK. The system aims to increase testing volumes, improve operational efficiency and manage the growing demand that many laboratories are now facing.
The fully automated system has a small footprint, which makes it accessible to many more laboratories that do not have much space.
The current social annual cost of obesity in the UK is estimated to stand at around £58bn – the equivalent to 3% of the 2020 UK GDP – according to a new independent study led by Frontier Economics and commissioned by Novo Nordisk.
The analysis, which includes both direct and indirect costs widely cited, also incorporates costs not typically included in previous studies such as the impact of COVID-19.
The Institute of Cancer Research has found that applying NHS guidelines for gene testing would have excluded many who had genetic alterations that could raise their risk of cancer.
The experts believe NHS guidelines on genetic testing should be less stringent. The study assessed patients who received testing in the private sector to see who would have been eligible for a test under the NHS. Many with an increased risk of cancer were excluded from the potential for monitoring, screening and preventative treatment.