Medidata updated its electronic data capture solution to take advantage of the recently announced CDISC standard for case report forms. It appears to be the first technology firm to do so. “The standards emerging from CDISC are key to enabling end-to-end operational excellence for sponsors and CROs and best-in-class performance of integrated eclinical solutions,” said Glen de Vries, president. “We are removing the barriers to our customers’ adoption of these standards by providing a comprehensive array of out-of-the-box, CDISC-compliant offerings coupled with an execution framework to quickly adapt these offerings to our customers’ specific study design needs and internal standards.” Here’s the release.

PPD will not receive a $25 million milestone payment for a diabetes drug, alogliptin, due to delays at FDA related to staffing issues, Forbes reported.

RadPharm appointed Kevin Duffy VP of sales and marketing. Said Ronald Berg, CEO: “He is an accomplished professional and sales veteran and I am certain his proven skills and strong customer focus will enable him to play a significant role in expanding our global market position.” Here’s the release.

Wachovia upgraded the stock of Icon. Apologies for the financial jargon and iffy grammar at the investment firm, which said: “Our Outperform rating is based on our belief that ICON’s EPS and revenue growth rates should continue to exceed the PS group by a decent margin. Like with most of the public CROs, we do, however, see the law of larger numbers as a major factor that will hamper ICON’s ability to consistently post 35+ percent revenue and EPS growth. That said, we believe ICLR should, at the very least, trade inline with our estimated EPS growth rate. With our assumption that ICON’s earnings will grow 24-25 percent through 2010, we believe the stock could be worth upwards of $40 or more.”

Exco InTouch, specializing in text messages for clinical trials and health care, won the Best IT Strategy award at a dinner sponsored by Via Media Ltd. Said Kevin Robinson, editorial director: “Any solution which helps the patient each and every day as well as improves efficiency and data accuracy for the sponsor represents an extremely valuable combination. This kind of practical yet powerful technology is really unique.” Here’s the release, and our story on the company.

The University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) launched a website to help breast cancer patients find clinical trials. The site does not have unique trial listings. But it says its engine to match patients (using their own health data) is an improvement on a similar effort offered by NCI. Said Laura Esserman, director of the Carol Franc Buck Breast Care Center at UCSF: “The more we can empower our patients to find out about and participate in trials, the faster we will be able to complete trials, and the sooner this new knowledge will translate into better care and outcomes for all patients.” The new site has a more elegant and user-friendly design than, say, clinicaltrials.gov.

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