In the EU and European Economic Area (EEA), certain products receive marketing authorization through the centralized procedure (CP). Following this, a number of documents, such as the product information (PI), require translation into all 24 EU and EEA official languages. The translations provided by the marketing authorisation holder (MAH) are approved by the corresponding EU member states. This review and approval process of the 24 languages is known as the linguistic re...

The assessment aid (AAid), an initiative of the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) Oncology Center of Excellence (OCE), was introduced in 2018 as a pilot program to help streamline the agency’s review of oncology drug applications. In this article, Genentech shares its experience with the AAid to date and provides recommendations for preparing the AAid and improving the process to fully realize its benefits. Keywords – assessment aid, FDA OCE pilots, oncology dr...

The FDA’s Quality Management System Regulation (QMSR) proposal, paired with the International Organization for Standardization’s ISO 13485:2016, is expected to deliver cost savings to medtech organizations that adhere to both requirements. This article covers the differences between QMSR, ISO 13485:2016, and the Medical Device Single Audit Program (MDSAP) so leaders can prepare for the upcoming changes.    Keywords – MDSAP, quality management, quality system regulat...

Cancer drugs under development that show substantial promise over existing therapies and have simple study designs, as well as easy to interpret endpoints, may qualify for a head-start review from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). While the drug will ultimately be reviewed under the same user fee time frame as other products, it may help speed up the review process for sponsors.   On 22 July, FDA published a draft guidance titled, Real-Time Oncology Review (...

It can take at least a year to 18 months to get a new medicinal product approved in the US, European Union, or United Kingdom. Over the last decade, regulators have introduced initiatives to shorten the time to market for medicines that address seriously debilitating and life-threatening conditions. This article reviews the initiation and achievements of US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) breakthrough therapy designation (BTD), the European Medicines Agency’s (EMA) ...

The Japanese regulatory system has been recognized as one of the most sophisticated and stringent regulatory systems in the world. The regulatory policies are developed and administered by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW), the Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA) executes the policies, and certain authorities are delegated to local governments. Over the last 6 decades, the Japanese regulator has faced many challenges but has kept enhancing the...

Abstract Over the last decade, regulators have introduced initiatives to reduce time to approval for medicines that address an unmet medical need. This article compares the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) breakthrough therapy designation (BTD), the European Medicine’s Agency’s (EMA’s) PRIority MEdicines (PRIME) scheme, and the innovative licensing and access pathway (ILAP) from the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and reviews th...

This article discusses advertising on streaming media and what regulatory reviewers need to take into consideration when reviewing online videos.   Introduction Television. One word, many meanings – it could be the wide-screen home TV, the latest Hulu-exclusive series we binge-watch on an iPad, or the 5-minute Snapchat original series that releases a new episode every week. There is no shortage of places for consumers to view video content outside of a traditional ...

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) awards priority review vouchers (PRVs) as an incentive to encourage development of therapeutics for underserved medical needs. The program, introduced in 2007 for neglected tropical diseases, was expanded to include rare pediatric diseases in 2012 and medical countermeasures in 2016. Of these three programs, the most successful has been for rare pediatric diseases, with studies indicating the pediatric PRV program stimulates clinic...

Feature articles during October included an in-depth look at the linguistic review process in Europe and  reviews of the regulatory pathways for herbal medicinal products, medical devices, and supplements in the EU and for advanced therapies in the Asian-Pacific region. Also included was an article on the challenges of data integrity remediation in cGMP facilities.   Linguistic review and herbal product regulation The linguistic review process for centrally authori...

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a steadily increasing number of competitive generic therapy (CGT) abbreviated new drug applications (ANDAs) in FY 2021 while the number of priority generic approvals leveled off, according to agency’s quarterly data on reviews and approvals of priority and competitive generics.   FDA approved 29 priority ANDAs in FY 2021, one more than the 28 approved in  FY 2020 . There was an increase of about 8% in the number of ...

Quality by design, or the principle of building quality into a product and testing, was introduced in 2011 as process validation guidance. Today it is codified within the Title 21 section 820. The quality management system (QMS) encompasses this principle in all areas of healthcare manufacturing – including drugs, biologics, and devices – and, with compliance, can ensure the safety and effectiveness of all manufactured products. The establishment, implementation, and maint...