Article 116: Sponsors Working to Make the Grade

• Take as a whole, sponsor relationships with sites have not improved since our last survey two years ago. A larger number of sponsors share top grades today than did our hands-down champ - Merck - in the 1997 survey.
• Top sponsors are seeing improvements in site relations and site performance given their increased investment in staff and protocol design.

Article 117: AMCs Rally in Study Conduct Market

• Select AMCs with central offices have reemerged as viable alternative study conduct service providers.
  
• AMCs appear to be investing in four key areas - institutional outreach, community networks, comprehensive training and certification programs, and active clinical trial selection - to build market share.

Article 118: Eye on Lung Cancer

• Lung cancer is currently one of the most common cancers in the United States. CenterWatch editorial has identified 39 drugs in the pipeline, and the American Cancer Society has awarded $13.5 million in grants.