National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH) and AbbVie Biopharmaceuticals GmbH Taiwan Branch (AbbVie) have recently signed a cooperation agreement to expand their research and development collaboration. This agreement, jointly signed by President Ming-Shiang Wu of NTUH and General Manager Richard Sun of AbbVie, aims to strengthen the digital strategy for clinical trials. The partnership seeks to leverage new forms of clinical trial research models to accelerate the speed and quality of trial approvals, thereby promoting prospective clinical trial research and offering new hope for patient treatments.
Since 2013, NTUH and AbbVie have maintained a strong collaborative partnership, jointly conducting 72 clinical trial cases and achieving a 45% growth in both the number of cases and acceptance rate. Their efforts have been dedicated to advancing patient health, setting numerous significant milestones. For instance, in 2023, Dr. Wu Jia-Feng's pediatric hepatobiliary and gastrointestinal team successfully established two global milestones by launching the world's first trial site. In 2024, the hematology and oncology team, led by Dr. Cheng Ann-Lii, Dr. Huang Tai-Chung, and Dr. Huang Shang-Yi, reached the milestone of launching the first trial site outside the United States and the Asia-Pacific region on four occasions. The Taiwan research team's clinical trial launch speed is the fastest in the Asia-Pacific region, showcasing Taiwan's exceptional performance in clinical trial execution.
In response to the global trend towards the digitalization of clinical trials, AbbVie has been actively advancing the digitalization of clinical trials in recent years. Over the past five years, approximately 33% and 21% of AbbVie’s clinical trials in Taiwan have incorporated digital data collection and wearable device designs. These approaches not only reduce the need for participants to travel to trial sites but also make the execution of clinical trials more flexible and efficient.
