Clinical trials
Top
testing ground
With approximately 1,000 active clinical trial sites and Health Canada authorizing approximately 900 new clinical trials each year, Canada is a strategic location to test, validate and scale new therapies
When you invest in Canada, companies can benefit from a world-class contract research sector with deep capabilities across all phases of clinical trials. You’ll benefit from top scientific talent, drawn from 15,000 researchers, 17 medical schools and 40 academic healthcare organizations.
Discover why global companies with bold ambitions are scaling their clinical testing operations in Canada for long-term growth.
Canadian clinical trials leadership
Faster, more flexible clinical trials
Canada’s clinical trials sector offers a regulatory environment that supports faster and more flexible trials – speeding up your time to market.
Health Canada's Agile Licensing pathway enables accelerated review of promising therapies, with some innovative treatments receiving authorization in as little as 200 days - comparable to FDA breakthrough designation timelines while offering early Canadian market access.
Health Canada’s regulatory framework is widely known for its robust ethical standards and efficient approval processes. The framework ensures patient safety and faster trial startup times, especially for innovative therapies.
Canadian researchers and organizations have extensive international networks for accelerated drug development. Proximity to the U.S. supports cross-border collaboration, making parallel trials easier to execute.
Supporting faster, high-quality clinical trials
Accelerating Clinical Trials Consortium: This 250-person team at the Canadian Institutes for Health Research is improving clinical trial processes. It streamlines ethics approvals and enhances data sharing to support industry innovation.
Clinical Trials Ontario: This non-profit supports the clinical trials community. It streamlines ethics reviews, gets trials started faster and helps companies navigate Ontario’s clinical research ecosystem.
Access to a diverse population and clinical trial support
Canada’s public healthcare system ensures broad patient access and consistent trial execution. The country’s multicultural population is ideal for trials that require diverse and representative participants. This enhances the applicability of trial results across global demographics. Thousands of clinical trials are taking place across Canada in every province. The largest number of trials can be found in Ontario, Québec, British Columbia and Alberta.
Advanced trial
design and research
excellence
Canadian-led clinical trials feature prominently in top-tier journals like The Lancet and The New England Journal of Medicine. Strong partnerships across academia, industry and government ensure excellence from trial design to execution. Examples include:
Canadian Trial Units: Canada’s 11 expert units provide specialized support for a wide range of trials. They offer tailored expertise for investigators and industry partners to enhance trial design and execution.
Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre: The National Research Council’s clinical trial material facility advances novel biologics. The centre supports industry with process optimization and small-scale production of monoclonal antibodies, viral vectors, gene therapies and more.
Research Excellence Framework: The Canadian Institutes of Health Research applies a research excellence framework to clinical trials that is aligned with international best practices.
In Canada, investors have access to robust data-sharing platforms and disease registries to enhance trial design and insights.
Canada investment highlight
AstraZeneca invests in Canada’s clinical trials sector
Global pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca is investing $820 million in a state-of-the-art clinical studies facility.
Located in the Greater Toronto Area, the hub will create 700 new scientific and technical jobs to execute more than 210 global clinical studies.
“This investment is a reflection of our growing clinical pipeline, our strong belief in Canada’s potential as a global hub for life sciences innovation. We believe the diverse talent pool, together with the network of world-class universities, hospitals, and research centres, will help us bring new medicines to Canadians and patients worldwide.”
Why choose Canada
Collaboration across academia, industry and government to support trial execution
Internationally recognized networks dedicated to clinical trials
Robust ethical standards and efficient approval processes
International reputation for scientific and data integrity
Explore Canada’s biomanufacturing and life sciences sector
Let’s work together
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