The International Conference on Phase 1 and Early Phase Clinical Trials and the pre-conference Open day of HKU Phase 1 Clinical Trials Centre were successfully held during April 25 - 26, 2013. We are honored to have 21 renowned international speakers and session chairs sharing their expertise and experience in phase 1 and early phase clinical trials with about 300 delegates from 10 countries and places in Asia-Pacific and Europe.

Phase 1 and early phase clinical trials are obviously blooming in the Asia-Pacific region. In the first session, speakers gave an overview on the latest international trends of new drug development and early clinical trials from the perspectives of international and local companies, including strategies in identifying promising new drug candidates, early clinical trials design and development, application of genomic sciences in research on personalized medicines, and the prospects of integrating the strengths of mainland China and Hong Kong in new drug research. In the second and third sessions, experts in phase 1 and early phase clinical trial operations and management openly shared their knowledge in the current clinical trial environments in Asia-Pacific and their practical experiences in operating phase 1 clinical trial centres in the region. Through the experts' sharing, it is clear that the Asia-Pacific region is ready, and will play a more important role in early development of new drugs on a global basis.

Selected presentation slides and photo snapshots are available for review below.

Once again, thanks for the support by the speakers, session chairs, and all the participants in the event.

Time	Topic	Speaker
0900 – 0915	Opening Remarks	Professor Karen Lam, Chairman, Clinical Trials Centre, The University of Hong Kong Dr. Che-Chung Luk, Cluster Chief Executive, Hong Kong West Cluster, Hospital Authority
Session 1: International Trends and Strategies of Phase 1 and Early Phase Clinical Development Chair: Professor Bernard Cheung, Medical Director, Phase 1 Clinical Trials Centre, The University of Hong Kong Professor Ching-Wan Lam, Director of Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics, Phase 1 Clinical Trials Centre, The University of Hong Kong Dr. Qinyong Dai, Medical Director, Roche Hong Kong Limited
0915 – 0945	Global Strategies of Early Clinical Development	Dr. Axel Riedel, Head of Regional Clinical Operations, Asia & MENA, Boehringer Ingelheim
0945 – 1015	Novartis Portfolio: Building Future Through an Unprecedented Pipeline	Dr. Jonathan Sun, Associate Medical Director APSA, Novartis Oncology
1045 – 1115	Pharmaceutical Development in Hong Kong: Prospects and Challenges	Dr. Benjamin Li, Chief Executive Officer, Lee's Pharmaceutical
1115 – 1145	Rapid Drug Development from First-in-Human to Proof-of-Concept – New Strategies	Dr. John Lambert, Chief Medical Officer, PAREXEL Early Phase
Session 2: Regulatory and Ethical Perspectives in Phase 1 and Early Phase Clinical Trials Chair: Professor Ian Wong, Head, Department of Pharmacology and Pharmacy, The University of Hong Kong Professor Geng-Chang Yeh, Vice Superintendent / Director, Joint Clinical Research Center, Taipei Medical University Hospital
1315 – 1345	Risk-Benefit and Ethical Issues in Phase 1 and Non-Patient Volunteer Research	Dr. Danny Soon, Managing Director and Principal Investigator, Lilly NUS Center for Clinical Pharmacology
1345 – 1415	New Drug Development and the Regulatory Environment in Korea	Professor Young-Suk Park, Director, Clinical Trial Center, Research Institute for Future Medicine, Samsung Medical Center
1415 – 1445	Challenges of Early Phase Clinical Trials and Regulatory Issues in Japan	Professor Yasuhisa Fujii, CCRC Operation Head, Chiba University Hospital Clinical Research Center
Session 3: Operations and Quality Assurance for Phase 1 Clinical Trials Centres Chair: Mr. Anthony Nguyen, Co-Director, Business & Project Acceleration Team, Regional Clinical Trial Center, Dong-A University Hospital Dr. Creany Wong, Business Development & Project Coordination Manager, Clinical Trials Centre, The University of Hong Kong
1515 – 1545	Establishment of the HKU Phase 1 Clinical Trials Centre	Mr. Henry Yau, Managing Director, Clinical Trials Centre, The University of Hong Kong
1545 – 1615	Practical Experience in Phase 1 Clinical Trials Centre Operation in New Zealand	Dr. Cheung-Tak Hung, Managing Director, Zenith Technology
1615 – 1645	Phase 1 Clinical Trials in Mainland China: Opportunities and Challenges	Dr. David Yang, Chief Executive Officer, MicroConstants China
1645 – 1715	A Quality Auditor's Observations of QI and QA Lapses in Oversight of Early Phase Clinical Trials in Asia	Dr. Chun-Han Ngim, Director of Quality Assurance and Legal Affairs, Regional Clinical Trial Center, Dong-A University Hospital
1715 – 1730	Summary and Closing Remarks	Professor Yu-Lung Lau, Chief Director, Clinical Trials Centre, The University of Hong Kong