Digital therapeutics grow up

Back in January, pharmaphorum caught up with the Syneos Health team to discuss their experience and insights into the emerging category of digital therapeutics (DTx), and the use of software-based services to deliver preventative, management, or treatment interventions to patients either as a monotherapy or as an adjunct to a pharmacological treatment.

While a number of key challenges were identified, not least from a pharma perspective, the challenges of traditionally slow-moving product development processes needing to adjust to the swifter more agile world of rapid software development and distribution, and their perspective on this aspect of pharma’s future was largely positive.

Much of this positivity was driven by the apparent early successes of some well-known DTx poster-children, best personified by Pear Therapeutics reSET for treating opioid use disorder.

Not only did Pear’s solution provide a uniquely modern approach to a uniquely modern epidemic, but its 12-week programme of digitally delivered cognitive behavioural therapy shot through FDA approval supported by robust claims of improving clinical outcomes. As a result, the company inked a highly publicised headline deal with Novartis’ Sandoz to partner on commercialisation and development, with reSET intended to work hand-in-hand with therapy on buprenorphine.

• Read the full article in pharmaphorum's Deep Dive digital magazine