Keynote Presentation: Modernizing Drug Development Through Digital Transformation and Non-Traditional Models

Digitalization has transformed virtually every industry, but it has been slow to gain traction within the preclinical phase of the drug development journey. Recent advances in digital vivarium technologies present opportunities to improve study precision, data management, monitoring and extraction from animal studies. Engaging in non-traditional models in vitro (such as organ-on-chip) and in vivo in companion animals has the potential to positively impact the preclinical phase of drug development. 

These novel models and digital technologies could enhance the reproducibility and clinical relevance of preclinical studies, increase the sensitivity for detecting pharmacologically or toxicologically significant changes, accelerate the development of novel anti-cancer therapies and even yield animal welfare benefits. These capabilities could add significant value to our current approaches to drug development animal studies. 

Learning Objectives: 

1. Overview of emerging vivarium technologies
2. Organ-on-chip systems primer
3. Introduction to the field of comparative oncology