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Reduce bureaucracy in clinical trials now

Nature Medicine volume 32, pages 28–30 (2026)Cite this article

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Clinical trials in Europe must become far more efficient to support the needs of investigators and their patients. The way trials are designed, conducted and regulated should be attuned first and foremost to the needs of patients, to ensure timely and equitable access to safe, effective and innovative treatments.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Medizinische Klinik III, Klinikum der Universität, LMU München, Munich, Germany

    Martin Dreyling

  2. European Hematology Association (EHA), Den Haag, The Netherlands

    Sara Badreh Wirström, Natalia Ramírez Comet & Robin Doeswijk

  3. Department of Medicine A, University Hospital Münster, Munich, Germany

    Wolfgang E. Berdel

  4. Lymphoma Coalition, Madrid, Spain

    Natacha Bolaños

  5. European Association of Urology (EAU) Policy office, Brussels, Belgium

    Sarah Collen

  6. Thalassaemia International Federation (TIF), Strovolos, Cyprus

    Loris Brunetta

  7. Action Kidney Cancer, Manchester, UK

    Sharon Deveson Kell

  8. Department of Hematology, Erasmus MC Cancer Institute, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

    Jeanette Doorduijn

  9. Departments of Clinical Epidemiology, Molecular Medicine, and Hematology, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark

    Tarec Christoffer El-Galaly

  10. Nursing School of Lisbon (ESEL), Nursing Research, Innovation and Development Centre of Lisbon (CIDNUR), Lisbon, Portugal

    Ricardo J. O. Ferreira

  11. Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Medicina, Instituto de Saúde Ambiental (ISAMB), Lisbon, Portugal

    Ricardo J. O. Ferreira

  12. Department of Clinical Research and Epidemiology Comprehensive Heart Failure Center, University Hospital of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany

    Marcela Fajardo-Moser & Christoph Wanner

  13. European Renal Association (ERA), Parma, Italy

    Marcela Fajardo-Moser & Christoph Wanner

  14. Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK

    Alan G. Fraser

  15. European Society of Cardiology (ESC), Sophia Antipolis, France

    Alan G. Fraser

  16. Lymphoma Study Association (LYSA), Pierre-Bénite, France

    Christian Gisselbrecht

  17. Hôpital Saint-Louis, Assistance Publique Hôpitaux de Paris (AP-HP), Paris, France

    Christian Gisselbrecht

  18. European Cystic Fibrosis Society, Karup, Denmark

    Kate Hill

  19. Northern Ireland Clinical Research Facility, Queen’s University, Belfast, UK

    Kate Hill

  20. European Society for Paediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, Geneva, Switzerland

    Sanja Kolaček

  21. University of Zagreb Medical School, Zagreb, Croatia

    Sanja Kolaček

  22. European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC), Brussels, Belgium

    Denis Lacombe

  23. BioMedical Alliance in Europe (BioMed Alliance), Brussels, Belgium

    Marieke Meijer

  24. European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Patient Forum, Sophia Antipolis, France

    Richard Mindham

  25. Acute Leukemia Advocates Network (ALAN), Bern, Switzerland

    Samantha Nier

  26. European Cancer Organisation (ECO), Brussels, Belgium

    Richard Price

  27. European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE), Strombeek-Bever, Belgium

    Johanna Tassot

Authors
  1. Martin Dreyling
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  2. Sara Badreh Wirström
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  3. Wolfgang E. Berdel
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  4. Natacha Bolaños
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  5. Sarah Collen
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  6. Loris Brunetta
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  7. Sharon Deveson Kell
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  8. Jeanette Doorduijn
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  9. Tarec Christoffer El-Galaly
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  10. Ricardo J. O. Ferreira
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  11. Marcela Fajardo-Moser
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  12. Alan G. Fraser
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  13. Christian Gisselbrecht
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  14. Kate Hill
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  15. Sanja Kolaček
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  16. Denis Lacombe
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  17. Marieke Meijer
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  18. Richard Mindham
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  19. Samantha Nier
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  20. Richard Price
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  21. Natalia Ramírez Comet
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  22. Johanna Tassot
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  23. Christoph Wanner
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  24. Robin Doeswijk
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Robin Doeswijk.

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Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

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Cite this article

Dreyling, M., Badreh Wirström, S., Berdel, W.E. et al. Reduce bureaucracy in clinical trials now. Nat Med 32, 28–30 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-025-04055-1

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