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Pfizer and Biogen-led working group completes blockchain proof-of-concept for clinical supply chain

Thu, 15 Aug 2019, 06:36 am UTC

The Clinical Supply Blockchain Working Group (CSBWG), an initiative that spun out of an open-invitation workshop at the Pfizer Blockchain Center of Excellence, has completed a proof-of-concept (POC) project, Outsourcing-Pharma reported.

The group comprises of representatives from sponsors, CMOs, CROs, academic sites, and one courier. Some of the participating companies are Pfizer, Biogen, and LedgerDomain.

The CSBWG is focused on developing a blockchain-based platform to improve transparency and collaboration in the clinical trial supply chain. The objective is to build a fully interoperable, transparent, and auditable platform which would help end-to-end tracking of experimental drug and comparators.

The group has recently completed a POC project and is considering next steps. For the POC, the blockchain-powered platform was provided by LedgerDomain, which has developed KitChain on top of Hyperledger Fabric.

“Project KitChain aims to create an immutable digital record for inventory and event tracking in the pharmaceutical clinical supply chain,” the website reads.

KitChain has been designed to suit the workflow of the clinical trial supply chain. Earlier this year, the CSBWG tested the iOS-based application in an advance ship notification (ASN) and ‘proof-of-delivery’ use case, according to the report.

For the next step, the CSBWG is considering using KitChain in a real clinical trial under the GxP regulations.

“As we learn more about the technology, what other value you can derive from, say, the regulatory reporting process, the drug accountability process at sites, the upstream tracking of the investigational product…There’s a lot of additional use cases that have the potential to build on what we’ve started as part of this first track-and-trace,” Chad Sklodosky, director, digital supply chain center of excellence, Pfizer, and co-chair of CSBWG told Outsourcing-Pharma.

“But the reality is, you’ve got to put at least one of these use cases into production in order to expand on that end-to-end visibility of the supply chain. We’re still working together toward that goal, but there is still a lot more opportunity that we haven’t even realized yet.”

Earlier in May, Pfizer and a number of other life sciences and healthcare companies joined Chronicled’s MediLedger Project Contracting and Chargebacks working group. MediLedger is focused on building an industry-owned permissioned blockchain network for the pharmaceutical sector based on open standards and specifications.

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