By Carla Reed, president, New Creed LLC
Cell and gene therapies are game changers. Critical health conditions that were once chronic or terminal are now being addressed, which is exciting news for patients and caregivers. But these therapies have a level of complexity from a supply chain perspective that needs new approaches, including a high level of information sharing and integration.
This topic was covered from different perspectives at two conferences I recently attended. What was fascinating was that both events highlighted a key enabler for these personalized therapies — a community-based supply chain supported by a responsive digital network.
Creating The “Digital Twin”
The first of these two events, the Futurelink conference hosted by Tracelink in Nashville, TN, included presentations and case studies from experts in the field of network technologies and tools, the use of orchestration platforms, and the growing value of data available through the mandates for serialization down to the item level. Participants and presenters provided thought leadership from the pharmaceutical/biotech industry sectors, while experts in the area of digital technologies explored solutions.
A theme reinforced by each presentation was the increasing complexity of the chain of custody — and in many cases a chain of identity. Technologies addressing the challenges of collaboration and communication across a network of diverse entities were discussed from a variety of perspectives. The term orchestration platforms, used to describe common digital platforms and data integration tools, highlights the need for collaboration and real-time communication across communities of participants. The outcome, a shared view of the sequence of activities, with related reference data across the chain of custody and into the chain of care, was a common goal. This should effectively create a “digital twin” of the physical flow of raw materials and products as they circulate around the patient in the center of the supply chain.
Once the challenge of connecting the dots between the different players in an increasingly global supply chain community is mastered, there is additional benefit in the digital data. Presenters debated what to do with the oceans of data that could be shared in digital format. Artificial intelligence — or machine learning — was touched on in a variety of presentations, highlighting many opportunities to monitor trends and predict requirements across geographic regions and specific therapies. These present exciting opportunities for the life sciences community in general.