Dr Lal PathLabs Inaugurates Clinical Trial Laboratory

Dr Lal PathLabs (LPL) has finalised a blueprint that will make it a leading player in the clinical trial business. The company has recently set up a state-of-the-art 4,000 square feet facility at its Gurgaon headquarters exclusively for clinical trial operations. Future plans include setting up a mega 65,000 square feet laboratory at Rohini in North Delhi, which is expected to be in place by 2008.This would make it South Asia's largest laboratory.

According to Dr Arvind Lal, CMD, LPL, the company is increasing its focus on clinical trial business for three principal reasons - global pharma companies increasingly outsourcing clinical trials to CROs, India's unique genetic diversity being ideal for running clinical trials, and LPL's expertise in conducting laboratory tests.External cost pressures, Dr Lal explained, are acting as a major driver for the pharmaceutical outsourcing market and emergence of the CRO sector. Outsourcing also gives sponsor companies the opportunity to convert the fixed costs of maintaining the personnel, expertise and facilities necessary for clinical trial management into variable costs, he observed. Dr Om Manchanda, COO, LPL, said, "India is a preferred clinical trial destination because of its one billion-plus genetically and socio-economically diverse population..”

Nitin Jain, Head- International Business & Clinical Research, said, "India offers at least 30 per cent cheaper options for conducting trials compared to the West. Also, there is no dearth of medical professionals.." The company plans to have a network of 50 laboratories across the country by March 2009 and expects to more than double the number of collection centres to touch 1,000 over the next five years.

EH News Bureau