Cytel has recently published a new ebook on synthetic control arms, and a new scientific primer as well.
The rising costs of clinical trial completion and the greater availability of data, make the uses of synthetic control arms a cost-effective option in a number of clinical trials. These synthetic control arms replace the placebo or standard of care with a simulated arm that draws on data collected in previous trials. This in turn saves the costs and times associated with patient recruitment and retention, while avoiding the need to give very ill patients an already well-tested candidate drug.
The new primer focuses on assessing the validity of data, the validity of methodology, and the modes of analysis and interpretation within this burgeoning field. Each of these is a crucial part of understanding how to make the most impact with a synthetic control.
