5.8 Percent: That's How Few Black People Were in AstraZeneca's New Asthma Drug Clinical Trials

The pharmaceutical industry is often criticized for the lack of racial and gender diversity within its clinical trials participants. AstraZeneca's recent Phase III trial for their new drug, Tezspire, was no exception. According to?FiercePharma , "The monoclonal antibody gained an FDA nod in severe asthma for use alongside a patient's current medications." Unfortunately, though 13.4% of the US population is Black, just 5.8% percent of Tezspire's 1061 Phase III trial participants were Black.?

Here are a few stats from the?CDC ?and the?HHS ?to highlight the prevalence and mortality of asthma in Blacks, which relates to this new drug:

• In 2019, an estimated 4.1 million non-Hispanic blacks had asthma. (CDC )
• In 2018, 2.7 million non-Hispanic black adults reported having asthma.
• Non-Hispanic African Americans were 40 percent more likely to have asthma than non-Hispanic whites in 2018.
• In 2019, non-Hispanic blacks were almost three times more likely to die from asthma-related causes than the non-Hispanic white population.
• In 2019, non-Hispanic black children had a death rate eight times that of non-Hispanic white children.
• Non-Hispanic black children were five times more likely to be admitted to the hospital for asthma than non-Hispanic white children in 2017.

We must make our clinical trials more inclusive.?

Acclinate partners with pharma companies to increase clinical trial diversity by using its predictive analytics platform and sustained engagement model. The partnership with pharma aims to ensure clinical trials have diverse demographics and sustained engagement by integrating culture and technology.

To learn more about our clinical trial diversity work, visit us here .