Clinical Research in Canada

Investing in clinical trials and offering the ability to participate in medical research is the best thing we can do for the health of Canadians today and tomorrow

Over the last 40 years, we — as a society — have seen incredible progress in the way illnesses, such as cancer are treated.  We owe these advances to medical research and the millions of patients who have volunteered to participate in clinical trials. As one of five global pharmaceutical Product Development sites, we contribute to all phases of clinical trial development, including overseeing clinical studies in Canada, the US and around the world.

In 2019, Roche invested more than $57 million in clinical research in Canada through 174 Roche-sponsored clinical trials, which offer people with a variety of medical conditions an opportunity to participate in the development of potential new treatment options.

Clinical trials are an integral part of a new drug or diagnostic discovery and development process as they provide evidence about the safety and efficacy of a medicine or diagnostic.  They also provide important information about cost-effectiveness, clinical value, and impact on a patient’s quality of life.

Clinical research follows strict scientific standards to protect patients and help produce reliable study results. Studies arethat are carefully designed to answer certain questions while taking steps necessary to safeguard the people taking part in the research. Medicines are usually tested in three phases before regulatory agencies consider them to be safe and effective.

The process can take upwards of 10 years, and according to the anby the Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development, the average cost to develop and gain marketing approval for a new drug is around $3.9 billion CAD.

The Mississauga pharmaceutical Product Development site participates in patient-centric practices aimed at making trials more accessible and understandable to patients.  Our study management teams have embedded patient-focused practices into the design and execution of our clinical trials, which have included the use of mobile home nurses who help increase trial participation for patients who are unable to come to regular site visits, as well as equipping patients with computers and tablets that disclose key study information related to their trial.

To learn more about clinical trials or to find a Roche-sponsored study, visit our 

Roche believes that improving health outcomes for all patients is core to our mission, and we are committed to being industry leaders in delivering improved health outcomes for all.

In the increasingly diverse world around us, the time is now for research and clinical development to ensure greater inclusion of patients across racial and ethnic groups in support of optimizing health outcomes for all patients worldwide.

Because disease outcomes and drug responses can vary across populations, research must include patients who are racially, ethnically, and gender representative of those who experience disease. Roche is deeply committed to addressing barriers to clinical trial participation, diversifying genetic data for scientific discovery, and increasing access to innovative diagnostic and therapeutic solutions, by advancing inclusive research.

By building trusted partnerships with patients, providers and across the healthcare ecosystem, we can collectively combine scientific advances, new technologies and real-world data to drive scientific innovation and create new standards for inclusive research.

As we strive to deliver more patient benefit, we are passionately addressing healthcare disparities in order to deliver ever more personalized healthcare solutions for all patients.

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Clinical Trials

Clinical trials are essential to determine whether new drugs, diagnostics or procedures in the laboratory are both safe and effective when used to diagnose or treat people.

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Roche Clinical Trials Infographic