Dr. Neena Nizar, founder and President of the Jansen’s Foundation was a keynote speaker at the Intellus Worldwide Summit, Marriott Hotel, Philadelphia on May 6th-8th.. The theme of the discussion was “Multistakeholder Collaboration.”

Dr. Nizar was joined by Christopher Missling, President and CEO of Anavex Life Sciences Corp, Dr. Florian Eichler, Associate Professor of Neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Nadia Bodkin, a seasoned patient advocate, Leslie Rogers, a passionate advocate for CFC Syndrome, and Jeff Leider, Founder and President of Let Them Be Little X2 Foundation.

Les ,Jeff, Florian, Christopher and Neena at the Intelus Summit, Philadelphia

Drug development is spurred when unmet need and biologics come together. Strategic planning, focus and drive can spur the birth of new treatments and change. The panel shared their insight and experiences, on how pharmaceutical and biotech companies can utilize patient input and collaborate more effectively for drug discovery and development.

Clinical trial recruitment, especially in the rare disease space, is a huge challenge in drug development. The panel discussed ways to create meaningful partnerships with advocacy groups and to develop initiatives that resonate with the disease-specific community. Focused initiatives such as patient registries and foundation programs were highlighted as successful measure to integrate patient perspectives into industry programs and trial design.