Between 2017 and 2021, the UK fell from fourth to tenth place in the global rankings for the number of phase III trials it hosts.
Today, the UK has started to climb the rankings again, up two spots to eighth place for the number of phase III trials. However, the UK remains below similar European countries like Spain (3rd), Germany (6th) and Italy (7th).
The UK also gained two places for phase II trials, moving from sixth to fourth, but fell one place in the phase I rankings down to fifth place.
For the second year in a row, the total number of industry clinical trials initiated in the UK increased, up from 411 trials in 2022 to 426 in 2023. These studies generate new treatments and interventions for patients and create valuable revenue for the NHS.
The number of phase III trials, the stage closest to a treatment being approved for patients, also showed growth. These increased by 16.5 per cent since 2022, from 182 to 212. However, the number of phase II trials initiated in the UK in 2023 remained flat year on year, and initiations of phase I trials, were down by 26.6% from 79 to 58.
The number of participants recruited into interventional industry clinical trials fell by 13.8 per cent from 25,730 to 22,191 in 2023/24. This is the lowest number of individuals participating in industry trials over the past seven-year period.
Overall recruitment to commercial research studies increased from 44,564 in 2022/23 to 150,191 in 2023/24; however, this was due to a small number of commercial observational research studies, which together recruited upwards of 100,000 people.
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