Oncology and Hematology

Parexel has been, and still is, at the forefront of many of the recent advances in GI cancer. Colon Cancer and Pancreatic Cancer remain major causes of cancer morbidity, and we are actively engaged inmany trials evaluating novel and promising agents in these disease areas. Significant advances have been seen with earlier use of immunotherapy, both as front-line therapy for advanced gastric cancer and as postoperative therapy of resected esophageal cancer.   A novel antibody-drug-conjugate targeting HER2 provides new hope for patients with this subset of gastric cancers.  The same therapy is under evaluation in colon cancer and we are very proud to be part of this endeavor.

At Parexel, we know that this condition is devastating for patients and families. We know that there is hope with new treatments and we are fully hands on and committed to bringing new treatments, cutting edge scientific advancements to patients in need.   Parexel’s Lung, Head and Neck Cancer specialists support the whole range of clinical studies from Early Phase to Phase III (registry studies), as well as post-approval safety trials. In the past 5 years, we have worked on nearly 100 clinical lung cancer and head and neck cancer projects, including non-small cell lung cancer and small cell lung cancer, and malignant mesothelioma trials. Our team has wide experience as medical leads in different indications (adjuvant, radiochemotherapy and in metastatic setting) and with different investigational compounds (targeted agents, checkpoint inhibitors, monoclonal antibodies, chemotherapy). Our colleagues are based in Europe, North America, and the APAC region, providing a global presence for high-quality medical oversight and monitoring experiences.    

Breast and gynecologic cancers (ovarian, uterine, and cervical cancer) have been a highly active area of clinical research at Parexel. We know the devastating effect these diseases have on women's health and are fully engaged to fight women's cancer.  As a result of this commitment and research, we have seen important advances and approval of several new drugs for HER2+ breast cancer as well as triple negative breast cancer. There remains, however, a persistent need for more effective drugs, particularly for triple negative breast cancer, where we have seen the first approval of immunotherapy and a novel antibody drug conjugate. A better understanding of resistance mechanisms in hormone sensitive (HR+) breast cancer has led to approval of new targeted therapies, with several others under investigation.  Ovarian cancer represents an ongoing challenge, with a very high rate of recurrence after initial surgery and chemotherapy. Global studies of maintenance therapy following chemotherapy conducted by Parexel have significantly increased the amount of time before progression, utilizing a class of agents called “PARP Inhibitors,” taking advantage of a cancer cell’s inability to repair DNA defects, thus creating “synthetic lethality.” 

With over a dozen hematology-trained specialists located worldwide, the team supports clinical trials from first in human to post-registration studies in benign conditions and hematologic malignancies. Our group has expertise in studies involving targeting therapies, immune-oncology, cell and gene therapy, and bone marrow transplantation. Our hematologists work with clients on study design, protocol writing, safety monitoring, data review and analysis, regulatory and other strategies in drug development. Parexel hematologists deliver high-quality medical monitoring to clients from start-up biotech to large pharmaceutical enterprise. We are passionate about the recent advancements in this area and are very proud to contribute to this endeavor.