Tampa, FL

Tampa Trails Smaller Markets In Medical Research Written by Jack Beecher, TrialScout Data Analyst "TrialScout's unique data transformation gives us a new window into the story of clinical research in Tampa and its surrounding areas," said Dr. Irfan Khan, CEO of Circuit Clinical. "We hope this snapshot is of interest and utility to patients, physicians, research sites and health systems as we work towards improving access to clinical research as a care option." While Tampa is the nation’s 11th largest designated market area (DMA) as per Nielsen3, its research centers have conducted less research than other smaller U.S. cities, according to TrialScout™, a powerful and dynamic platform that helps patients find, choose, and rate their clinical trial experiences. TrialScout has transformed the national clinical trial database into a user-friendly interface. Over the past fifteen years, Tampa has conducted less clinical research than smaller cities like Columbus, St. Louis, and Raleigh, and has significantly trailed closely-ranked DMAs such as Boston, Atlanta, and Detroit (ranked 9th, 10th, and 13th by Nielsen, respectively)3 in this department as well1. However, more research has been conducted in Tampa than in several markets with greater populations, such as Cleveland, Orlando, and Portland1,4,5. As can be seen in the map below, the greater Tampa area being referred to includes neighboring cities and towns such as St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Lakeland, Sarasota, and the like. Distribution of Clinical Trials per Zip Code Copyright © 2019 TrialScoutTM

Cities with comparable volumes of research over the same timespan to Tampa’s include Phoenix (with approximately 9,738), San Diego (with an estimated 9,776), and the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill Combined Statistical Area (about 10,699). The latter is a notable comparison since two major academic health systems (Duke and University of North Carolina) reside in Raleigh, both of which dwarf Tampa’s largest academic health system (University of South Florida [USF] Health) when it comes to research1. When you make comparisons based on population size, the pattern is not as clear. The Moffitt Cancer Center has conducted more research than any other health system in Tampa; last year, its total more than doubled that of the second-most active system, USF Health. The majority of Tampa’s clinical research is concentrated among a small amount of systems; the top five (listed below) accounted for an approximate total of 63.3% of active* research throughout Tampa in 2018. Moffitt Cancer Center, with 27% of Tampa’s clinical research

University of South Florida Health, with 12.8%

Florida Cancer Specialists and Research Institute, with 6.9%

BayCare Health Systems, at 6%

Tampa General Hospital, with 5.8%1 Active Studies by Research Center in Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater MSA (2018)1 Copyright © 2019 TrialScoutTM 10 Years of the Top 5 Clinical Trial Hospitals in Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater MSA (2018)1 Copyright © 2019 TrialScoutTM