DTI: AstraZeneca to scale up clinical research in PHL

AstraZeneca is advancing plans to expand clinical research in the Philippines, including a Manila center for clinical trials and proposed facilities focused on cancer and cardio-renal-metabolic diseases.

The British-Swedish pharmaceutical company is working with the Philippine Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza), Department of Science and Technology, De La Salle University and Department of Health on the proposed projects.

A key project is a Clinical Trial Centre of Excellence in Manila, targeted for establishment within the year. It would form the first of three planned pillars, alongside a Cancer Command Centre and a Cardio-Renal-Metabolic Centre.

AstraZeneca and Peza are also developing plans for a Multi-Stakeholder Health Innovation Hub within its ecozone’s network.

Peza’s flagship Oncology Innovation Center would use artificial intelligence for early lung cancer detection, strengthen patient support and healthcare workforce capabilities, and generate evidence for policymaking.

Further, the plans build on a memorandum of understanding signed by Peza and AstraZeneca in August 2025.

AstraZeneca has invested more than P3 billion in Philippine clinical trials over the past six years and currently supports more than 28 ongoing and planned trials, involving over a thousand Filipino patients enrolled since 2022 across more than 150 trial sites.

Moreover, the company is also looking to expand global clinical trial participation and work with the government on faster regulatory processes.

“Expanding clinical trials and research is not just about medicines. It is about creating high-value jobs for our doctors, nurses, researchers, and health professionals, so more Filipinos can build globally competitive careers here at home,” Trade Secretary Ma. Cristina A. Roque said during DTI’s visit to AstraZeneca’s Discovery Centre in Cambridge, United Kingdom.

AstraZeneca is a global, science-led biopharmaceutical company that focuses on the discovery, development and commercialization of prescription medicines, primary for the treatment of diseases in three therapy areas–oncology, cardiovascular, renal and metabolism and respiratory. It operates in over 100 countries and its medicines are used by millions of patients worldwide.