Cohortias International and OncoBay Clinical Form Strategic Partnership to Expand Clinical Research in Latin America

Monterrey, Mexico and Tampa, Fla., U.S. January 2021 OncoBay Clinical, Inc., a full-service boutique contract research organization (CRO) specializing in the simplification of complex oncology programs, and Cohortias International, a boutique Latin America CRO with a foundation in scientific leadership, today announced a strategic partnership to further build on their joint mission of eliminating patient barriers to access for the most advanced and potentially lifesaving clinical trials.
Despite a population of over 600 million and over 24,000 hospitals, around 24% of the world’s total, Latin America has been largely underserved with clinical trials, especially when compared to the U.S. and Europe. Considering its size and expansive healthcare infrastructure, as well as the strong bond between patients and physicians, the region provides a very significant opportunity for patient recruitment and retention that has been underexploited to date.
“Our partnership with Cohortias International, further solidifies our commitment to both patients and sponsors by providing access to clinical trials for an underserved population, while also providing high enrolling oncology sites and best-in-class operational expertise,” said Krystyna Kowalczyk, President and CEO of OncoBay Clinical. “We recognize, however, that in order to maximize on the enrollment potential of Latin America, it is crucial to have a local CRO with the expertise to efficiently execute within the region’s regulatory framework, staffed with on the ground teams that speak the language, understand the culture and are familiar with navigating the nuances of the region.
Martijn Wallert, CEO of Cohortias, added, “Clinical research in Latin America has been expanding steadily over the last decade, mainly because of cost effectiveness, excellent patient recruitment and the emergence of FDA approved regulatory agencies, Cohortias has established strong clinical relationships with key opinion leaders and first-class hospitals across the region, and we have an intimate knowledge of the considerable capabilities of our network of Oncology sites throughout Latin America. Our reach extends to both urban and rural regions in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico, providing our sponsors with access to a much greater pool of patients, while offering the hope of life saving treatments to the medically underserved.
Both OncoBay and Cohortias have a shared commitment to support our sponsors, sites and patients with deep operational expertise, fueled by innovation that is grounded in scientific leadership. Our vision and our mission are aligned as we offer hope – one patient at a time.

About OncoBay Clinical
OncoBay Clinical is a boutique contract research organization (CRO) specializing in immuno-oncology/cell therapy, offering full- service custom-curated CRO solutions for global pharmaceutical and biotech companies looking to advance their immuno-oncology product or device. As a wholly owned, for-profit subsidiary of Moffitt Cancer Center, OncoBay embeds scientific expertise, operational excellence and integrated cell manufacturing capabilities providing true end-to-end control. Built on years of IO and cell therapy expertise, a streamlined technology framework, a highly trained site network, and a dedicated team of experienced professionals, OncoBay is committed to operational excellence from start to finish. For more information, visit Oncobay.com and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

About Cohortias International

The ‘Cohortias concept’ finds its genesis in the personal experience of one of its co-founding board members. After one of his close relatives had been diagnosed with a then untreatable condition, he pursued alternative options through clinical research and discovered the lack of resources available in Latin America.

This motivated him to start a dialogue between physicians and leaders in clinical research through an International CRO (Julius Clinical). After a long period of exploration and planning between the two, Cohortias was formed with one goal in mind: To provide the Latin American population with the opportunity to participate in potentially lifesaving treatments through clinical research.

Now, almost 4 years after founding, Cohortias’s growth throughout Latin America has been unprecedented; with over 200 active clinical sites and a network of internationally recognized and prestigious Academic Leaders, Doctors and Scientific Counselors. This network and the quality of our work have been the key factors driving our growth. Our business model is based on a foundation of peer-to-peer communication. This has allowed us to adapt to the changing clinical research landscape by taking advantage of the local expertise that our network provides, while speeding up processes through a more seamless and direct line of communications.

As a truly locally based CRO in Latin America with offices in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Mexico, we can firmly say that we are the CRO of Latin America. Our commitment is to always pursue the interests of its population, bringing innovative and potentially lifesaving treatments through clinical research. To learn more about the CRO of Latin America, please visit Cohortias.com and follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

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Media Contacts for Cohortias
Pedro Alvarez
p.alvarez@cohortias.com

Media Contacts for OncoBay Clinical
Deborah Turunjian
dturunjian@oncobay.com