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# Califf: Base Clinical Trials on Data Sources
- URL: https://www.fdaweb.com/califf-base-clinical-trials-on-data-sources/
- Published: 2016-11-01T12:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-14T21:44:15.000Z
- Author: David McFarland
- Tags: Drugs, #legacy-id-D5137226

FDA commissioner **Robert Califf** says he believes the drug industry “is near the tipping point where companies can use data sources to collect what they need” for regulatory approval, thus reducing the cost of clinical trials. Speaking in an interview at Cardiovascular Research Foundation’s TCT 2016, Califf said he believes that if data from clinical practice are used, the need for extensive monitoring should go down because the data are not being collected to skew trial results.

Asked about data sharing, he said that the next big scientific revolution will involve data sharing, which will allow those working in the industry to solve problems they couldn’t have conceptualized before. He called on researchers to stop hoarding data and to reach the point where data sharing is the norm.

Patient engagement, Califf said, can lead to more use of registries and development of clinical trials that address issues that are important to patients.