Clinical trial technology provider, Medable, has partnered with wearable device firm Masimo to integrate its pulse oximeter technology into clinical trials.
The partnership between the California-based companies means that Masimo’s MightySat Rx pulse oximeter wearable device can now be used in clinical trials by any sponsor, with the device now available for approximately 3000 patients in 25 countries across two oncology indications: lung and breast cancer.
Medable says that integrating the wearable device into its evidence-gathering system will allow sponsors to use a more decentralised model, eliminating significant burdens including requiring unwell patients to travel to clinical sites in order to gather information. Integrating a wearable into the process allows for continuous data gathering from patients without requiring them to go anywhere. Gathering data using a patents own tech is often beneficial.
Daniel Cantillon, chief medical officer at Masimo, said: “Clinical trials require top-in-class accuracy and data quality both on-site and off-site from clinical offices. Medable is solving this problem through its advocacy and by empowering more patients to participate in research. Medable’s flexible platform enables scalability and data aggregation for a holistic approach.”
The overall market for wearables in the medical space has been on a generally upward trajectory since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. According to GlobalData, the market size of wearable technology in the medical sector in 2023 was estimated to exceed $100bnand is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15% up to 2030, further rising to $156bn by the end of 2024.
The market has seen some competition from non-healthcare-centric technology firms such as Apple attempting to move into the space, they have however met with some setbacks. Namely a patent dispute with Masimo over its own pule oximeter technology that saw the sales of certain Apple Watches halted in the US.
Medable says that currently, 20% of trials leveraging its own evidence generation platform include a wearable device, with 35% of those trials being in oncology.
Musaddiq Khan, Medable’s vice president of Digital Outcomes, said: “Masimo’s SET pulse oximetry is sensitive enough to capture key vitals on the very ill like cancer patients, plus it works on all skin tones, all ages, and is easy to use.
Elsewhere in the wearable space, biosensor company Allez Health has raised $60m in Series A+ financing to advance its continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) technology.
