SystemClinical Development

Clinical Trial Feasibility

Clinical trial feasibility with a cited reason for every country and site — and a forecast that moves with the plan

Every country and site ranked with a cited reason; move one and the forecast follows.

See one case, screen by screen ↓
demo90sitesscored across 14 countries on the sample study, each with a cited reason
demo2monthsearlier last patient in when Brazil moves from back-up to core — May to March 2028, seen before anyone commits
demo23sitesclaimed more than 3× the patients they screened — counted at 2× history until confirmed
target11daysfrom questionnaires back to an approved site list, against about six weeks by spreadsheet
In short

What is Clinical Trial Feasibility?

Software that helps a sponsor or CRO decide which countries and sites will recruit a study's patients, and forecast when enrollment will finish. Clinical Trial Feasibility adds six agents that read the protocol, CTMS site history, returned questionnaires, public trial registries and licensed patient counts, rank every country and site with a cited reason, and forecast last patient in from P10 to P90.

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Updated

The problem

Why choosing countries and sites takes six weeks — and still misses

Before a Phase 2 or 3 study starts, the feasibility lead decides which countries and which sites will recruit its patients. Today that is a questionnaire round, a CTMS export and a spreadsheet. For a 480-participant Crohn's study, questionnaires go to 186 sites in 14 countries, 131 come back and 90 are usable — and someone has to read every one, pull each site's history, check the registries for competing trials and estimate the patient pool, country by country.

The reasons behind each choice end up in people's heads. Sites overstate the patients they can find, competing trials are checked by hand, the forecast is a single date with no range, and when a country manager asks “what if we open Brazil?” nobody can answer before the next meeting. ICH E6(R3) asks sponsors to select qualified investigators with adequate resources and to document it — the spreadsheet rarely says why.

typical80%of trials miss their enrollment timeline
typical11%of activated sites never enroll a patient — about one in nine
Where feasibility's working days go, questionnaires back to an approved listestimated
By hand30 days
With the solution6.5 days
  • Reading questionnaires and chasing missing answers8 → 2 d
  • Pulling site history from the CTMS and checking claims5 → 0.5 d
  • Checking registries for competing trials4 → 0.5 d
  • Estimating eligible patients by country4 → 0.5 d
  • Scoring sites and writing the rationale6 → 1 d
  • Forecast, country review, approval and filing3 → 2 d

Estimated split of working days for one Phase 3 study with about 130 returned questionnaires, by spreadsheet and with the solution. The 11-day target is calendar time, including waiting for sites and approvers. People still review, approve and sign.

How it works

How a study moves

Six specialist agents read the protocol, site history, questionnaires, registries and patient counts, then rank, cite and forecast; the study lead approves, the feasibility lead signs.

What comes in
Study inProtocol synopsis · plus site history, questionnaires, registries
Agents at work
Protocol readerentry criteria
Then
Patient-pool estimator
Competing-trial scanner
Site history analyst
Questionnaire reader
Then
Ranker & rationale writerscore · cite · forecast
A person decides
Feasibility leadsigns after the study lead approves allocation
What comes out
Ranked, cited country and site list
Live forecast, P10–P90
Filed to the TMF
One case, step by step

One study, from questionnaires back to a signed site list

VLT-401 — veltrimab in moderate-to-severe Crohn's disease, Phase 3, 480 participants, target last patient in June 2028. Questionnaires went out on Sep 12 and closed on Oct 2. Here is what happens next, screen by screen, in the working solution.

  1. 01Morning

    The plan opens as a world map

    Lena Ortiz · Feasibility lead

    Fourteen countries sit on the map, sized by patients allocated — the US with 140 and Poland with 78 as lead countries, Europe in its own close-up, Brazil and France held as back-up. Under the map, the forecast: most likely last patient in May 2028, 7 weeks before the June 2028 target, with a range from February to September 2028 across 64 primary sites.

    “Each site enrolls at its own past rate and opens when its approval path allows; 15 of 64 primary sites open by the Feb 2027 first-patient target.”

  2. 02One click

    Why Brazil is only a back-up

    Lena Ortiz · Feasibility lead

    Brazil ranks 13th of 14 with a score of 60. Its evidence opens beside the forecast, five factors each with a value and a source: past enrollment 1.70 a site a month from site history on 4 of 4 sites, 11,500 eligible a year from real-world counts, 1 same-population trial of 6 recruiting, a 27-week start-up with 150 days of approval, and 4 questionnaires with claims consistent.

    “Three strong sites (2.0–2.6 participants a month in NXL-118) and a large pool, held back only by approval: about 150 days for ANVISA and national ethics, so its sites open in April 2027, after first patient in.”

  3. 03The tier switch

    She moves Brazil to core, and the forecast follows

    Lena Ortiz · Feasibility lead

    Lena switches Brazil from back-up to core. Its three ready sites open as primary and take 36 participants from the US, Canada and Italy. The forecast is recalculated from each site's own history: most likely last patient in March 2028 instead of May, optimistic January, cautious July, on 67 primary sites.

    “Back-up → Core · 3 back-up sites open as primary and take 36 participants (20 from United States, 10 from Canada, 6 from Italy).”

  4. 04Sent for approval

    The country's whole case, for the study lead

    Elena Duarte · Country manager, Spain, Italy, Brazil

    The change goes to Sam Patel, the study lead, with the forecast and the evidence. Brazil's page shows the rest: the patient funnel from 98,900 living with Crohn's to 11,500 who meet the endoscopic score, one same-population competitor (OAK-21) among 6 Crohn's studies recruiting — the others are in different populations and are not counted against sites, and the approval path — ANVISA review about 90 days, national ethics about 60, import licence about 4 weeks.

    “Proposed as core on the map: three sites open in April 2027 and carry 36 participants. Sent to Sam Patel for approval.”

  5. 05The ranking board

    Ninety sites, ranked on what they did, not what they say

    Ranker & rationale writer

    Every site that returned a usable questionnaire is scored on six weighted factors: past enrollment 30%, patient pool 20%, start-up speed 15%, competition 15%, questionnaire quality 10%, representation 10%. Each row shows the site's rate a month, start-up weeks, competing trials within 25 km and its claim against history — 23 sites claim more than 3× what they screened. Move a weight and the ranking and the live forecast follow.

    “Move a weight — agents re-propose inside each country's allocation; decisions made by people stay.”

  6. 0607:52

    A country manager pushes for a site

    Tom Becker · Country manager, Germany, UK, France

    Tom asks to make Universitätsklinikum Rheinhafen in Duisburg a primary site. The cited rationale says why it ranks #85 of 90: in VLT-208 it enrolled 3 participants against a plan of 10 in 12 months, start-up took 29 weeks, and its questionnaire claims about 80 eligible a year where it screened 14 — 5.7× its history, so it is counted at 28. Four Crohn's trials in the same patient group recruit within 25 km, one at the hospital itself.

    “Please make Rheinhafen a primary site. Prof. Albers leads the national IBD society and other sites follow his lead.”

  7. 07Her decision

    Back-up, with a reason Tom can read

    Lena Ortiz · Feasibility lead

    The agents propose; Lena decides. She keeps Rheinhafen as back-up for Germany — it opens if a primary German site falls behind after month 6 — and the reason goes to the country manager and is filed with the list. Tom reads it and signs Germany, the UK and France.

    “Keep as back-up: 3 of 10 enrolled in VLT-208, 29-week start-up and four competing trials nearby. Opens if a German primary site falls behind after month 6.”

  8. 08Ready to sign

    She signs the list with the meaning of her signature

    Lena Ortiz · Feasibility lead

    The site list shows each approval: the agents' proposal, five of five country managers, the study lead's allocation. Lena signs VLT-401 site list v3 with her password and chooses the meaning — “I approve this site list and the rationale for each site” or “I have reviewed this site list”.

  9. 09Signed and filed

    Every rationale goes to the trial master file

    Lena Ortiz · Feasibility lead

    The site list, the country allocation, the P10–P90 forecast and the approval record are filed to the trial master file under site selection, with a cited rationale for each of the 76 primary and back-up sites. The people's own changes stay on the record — Omar Haddad's and Priya Raman's moves to back-up, each with its reason.

    “Signed · 76 site rationales filed to the trial master file.”

  10. 10When the protocol changes

    Amendment 1, re-run before anything moves

    The six agents

    Amendment 1 lowers the endoscopic entry score to SES-CD ≥ 4 (≥ 3 isolated ileal) and allows up to four prior advanced therapies. The agents re-read the criteria, recount the pool — up 14% overall — and re-score all 90 sites in 3 min 12 s. Three proposals change, each shown with its reason, and nothing reaches the plan until Lena applies or discards it.

    Protocol reader: “2 criteria changed · thresholds copied with section citations.”

Who it’s for

Built for everyone who chooses where a study recruits.

The same study, seen by the five people who shape its site list — what their feasibility round looked like, and what it looks like now.

LO
Lena OrtizFeasibility lead, Northwind Bio · signs the final site list
Feasibility lead
Before
Runs feasibility for three studies from questionnaires, a CTMS export and a spreadsheet — “I don't need a score. I need the reason, and where it came from.”
Now
Opens every country and site with its cited reason, decides on the evidence, and signs a list that files its own rationale to the TMF.
SP
Sam PatelStudy lead, clinical operations · approves the country allocation
Study lead
Before
Owns the timeline and the allocation — “Tell me what moving a country does to last patient in.”
Now
Receives each tier change with the forecast it produces — May to March 2028 for Brazil — and approves it with the evidence in front of him.
ED
Elena DuarteCountry manager · Spain, Italy, Brazil
Country manager
Before
Knows her sites and argues for them in meetings — “Brazil's sites are the fastest we have — the approval is the only problem.”
Now
Points to Brazil's evidence page: site history, patient funnel, competitors and the approval path, each with its source.
TB
Tom BeckerCountry manager · Germany, UK, France
Country manager
Before
Pushes for the sites he trusts, like Rheinhafen — “Prof. Albers leads the national IBD society and other sites follow his lead.”
Now
Gets a written reason for every decision on his sites, from the site's own history, before he signs his countries.
MC
Dr. Maya ChenMedical lead · confirms criteria and the patient-pool logic
Medical lead
Before
Checks that entry criteria were read correctly — “Thresholds copied exactly, or not at all.”
Now
Sees each criterion with its protocol section and an amendment re-run that shows what changes before it is applied.
Built on the engine

6 agents. Each with one job, and hard limits.

Six specialist agents read the protocol, site history, questionnaires, registries and patient counts, then rank, cite and forecast; the study lead approves, the feasibility lead signs.

Protocol reader

Reads the synopsis or amendment and extracts the population, every inclusion and exclusion criterion as a structured rule, procedures that need site equipment such as ileocolonoscopy, visit burden and target size, citing the protocol section for each.

  • Never paraphrases a threshold — copied exactly, with its section
  • Flags any criterion it cannot structure
Patient-pool estimator

Applies the criteria, in protocol order, to licensed real-world counts per country and region, and keeps the funnel from diagnosed to moderate–severe to advanced-therapy failure to the endoscopic score — eligible patients a year.

  • Counts only, never patient-level data — minimum cell size 11
  • Every number shows its data cut and the criteria it could not apply
Competing-trial scanner

Reads public registries for recruiting studies, matches them on condition, phase, line of therapy and age, and marks each as same or different population — per country and within 25 km of each site.

  • Cites the registry entry for every match
  • A different-population study never counts against a site
Site history analyst

Reads the CTMS: enrolled against planned in similar studies, months recruiting, screen failure, start-up weeks split into contract, ethics and activation, data quality and inspections.

  • Read-only access to the CTMS
  • No history means neutral, never zero — it never infers what the record does not hold
Questionnaire reader

Reads every returned questionnaire — portal, PDF or email — with its question numbers, checks completeness, compares the eligible-patient claim with what the site screened, and drafts plain follow-up questions.

  • Follow-ups are drafts until a person sends them
  • Quotes the site's own words
Ranker & rationale writer

Scores six factors 0–100, combines them with the study's weights, writes a rationale where every sentence cites its source, proposes primary, back-up or not selected within each country's allocation, and forecasts last patient in from 2,000 simulations.

  • No uncited sentence
  • Proposes only — country managers and the feasibility lead decide
  • Explains every move of more than 5 places
Feasibility lead

Signs the list and allocation. The agents propose; a named person decides.

Ask in plain words

Ask about any country, site or forecast

Ask in plain words — or tell it what to change. Every answer points to the site history, questionnaire or registry entry it came from.

Why is Rheinhafen only a back-up?

Universitätsklinikum Rheinhafen ranks #85 of 90. In VLT-208 it enrolled 3 of 10 planned in 12 months. The questionnaire claims 80 eligible a year — 5.7× what it screened; we count 28. Four Crohn's trials recruit within 25 km, one at the hospital itself. Its start-up took 29 weeks, about 5 weeks slower than the German median of 24. Tom Becker asked to make it primary — that decision is yours.

What if Brazil moves to core?

Brazil is back-up only because of approval: about 150 days for ANVISA and national ethics, so its sites open in April 2027, after first patient in elsewhere. Centro Mineiro de DII enrolled 31 in 12 months on NXL-118. Moving Brazil to core opens its three sites with 36 participants and moves the most likely last patient in from May 2028 to March 2028. France stays back-up. Sam Patel approves any allocation change.

Which sites overstate their patient numbers?

23 sites claim more than 3× the patients they screened per year on their last Northwind study. Each is counted at 2× its history until the site confirms, and follow-up questions are drafted for you to send.

When will we finish enrolling?

With the 64 primary sites, the last patient is most likely in May 2028 — 7 weeks before the June 2028 target. Optimistic February 2028, cautious September 2028. The range comes from 2,000 simulations of when each site opens and how fast it enrolls, based on its own history and start-up.

Every screen

The working solution, as it ships.

13 screens from the working solution, on its sample data. Pick one to see it large.

The plan as a world mapFourteen countries sized by patients allocated, lead, core and back-up colours, the Europe close-up, the selected country's evidence and the live forecast.
Why a country ranks where it doesFive factors with their values and sources — site history, real-world counts, public registries, approval path, questionnaires — beside the forecast.
Move a country, see the forecastBrazil moved from back-up to core: participants re-allocated, three sites opened and last patient in recalculated, with the change ready for the study lead.
Countries side by sideTier, score, eligible patients a year, same-population trials, approval path, start-up, sites, allocation and what each can enrol by the target.
One country's evidenceWhy this tier, the patient funnel from real-world counts, competing trials marked same or different population, and the approval path.
The site ranking boardNinety sites scored on weighted factors, with claim-against-history chips, weight presets and a live forecast that follows every change.
One site, every reason citedThe rationale with numbered citations, the country manager's request, and the questionnaire, history, competing trials and investigator behind it.
The person's decisionPrimary, back-up or not selected, with a written reason sent to the country manager and filed with the list, and the factor breakdown.
Sign the site listThe document, the forecast, the signer and the meaning of the signature, before the list is filed.
Signed and filedAllocation by country, the P10–P90 forecast and the changes made by people, with every step done — signed and filed to the trial master file.
Re-run for a protocol amendmentThe changed criteria, each agent's step and time, and what changes — eligible patients by country, site proposals, last patient in — before anything is applied.
How well the rankings predictEnrollment by rank band on finished studies, forecast range against actual enrollment, why sites were not selected and every feasibility run.
Your rulesDefault weights for new studies, the 2× claim cap, the competing-trial radius and the follow-up threshold — every change recorded in the audit trail.
Governance

Built for site selection you can defend: cited, approved, signed, filed.

Agents propose; named people decideCountry managers review their sites and can swap or add one with a written reason. The study lead approves the country allocation and every tier change; the feasibility lead decides each site and signs the final list.
Every sentence cites its sourceEach country and site rationale links every statement to the CTMS record, the questionnaire answer, the registry entry or the real-world count it came from. A sentence without a source is not written.
Claims checked against historyA questionnaire claim is counted at most 2× what the site actually screened until the site confirms it. A site with no history is scored neutral, with its claim counted at 60%, never zero.
Counts only, never patient recordsPatient pools come from a licensed data partner as counts, with a minimum cell size of 11. No patient-level data is used, and every number shows its data cut.
Signed and filed to the TMFThe final site list is signed electronically with name, time and meaning, and filed to the trial master file under site selection with every rationale, the forecast and the approval record.
Re-scored weekly, on the recordRegistries and new questionnaire answers are refreshed every Monday; any site that moves more than 5 places is explained. Every agent step, decision and setting change is on the audit trail.
Configuration

Your feasibility rules, set once

How sites are scored, who approves and where the evidence comes from are settings — every change is recorded in the audit trail.

SettingDefaultChoose from
Default factor weightsPast enrollment 30% · patient pool 20% · start-up 15% · competition 15% · questionnaire 10% · representation 10%Set each weight; presets Balanced · Proven sites · Fast start-up · Representation
Count questionnaire claims at most 2× screening historyOnOn · Off
Radius for competing trials25 km15 km · 25 km · 50 km
Ask for follow-up below this questionnaire completeness90%80% · 90% · 100%
Representation counts in the scoreOn — supports the study's diversity planOn · Off (sets its weight to 0)
Re-score weekly when registries changeMondays 06:00 · told when a site moves more than 5 placesOn · Off
Country allocation approverSam Patel · Study leadSam Patel · Dana Okafor
Final site list signerLena Ortiz · Feasibility leadLena Ortiz · Sam Patel
Connections

Works with the evidence feasibility already runs on

Protocol synopsis and amendmentspopulation, inclusion and exclusion criteria, procedures and target size
Clinical trial management systemsite history: enrolled against planned, screen failure, start-up weeks
Feasibility questionnaire portalreturned questionnaires, plus PDFs and email replies
Public trial registriesrecruiting studies by country and near each site, refreshed weekly
Real-world patient countsfrom a licensed data partner, counts only
Trial master filethe signed site list, rationales, forecast and approval record
What it changes

The difference, in numbers.

Every figure is labelled: a target the solution is built to, an estimate, a typical published result, or a proven one.

target
11days
from questionnaires back to an approved site list
By hand≈ 6 weeks
With agents11 days
target
3%
of chosen sites enrolled nobody; about one in nine across the industry
Industry≈ 11%
With agents3%
estimated
2months
earlier last patient in from moving one country, seen before anyone commits
Plan as proposedMay 2028
Brazil to coreMar 2028

“demo” = seen in the working solution, on its sample study data · “target” = the design goal, measured in the live solution · “estimated” = our estimate · “typical” = published figures (Tufts CSDD — about 11% of activated sites enroll no one; enrollment-barriers review, 2020 — about 80% of trials miss their enrollment timeline). ICH E6(R3) is named as context. People, companies, studies, sites and competing trials named on this page are fictional — characters and sample data in the working solution.

Questions

What clinical operations teams ask us.

What is clinical trial feasibility software?

Software that helps a sponsor or CRO decide which countries and sites will recruit a study's patients, and forecast when enrollment will finish. Clinical Trial Feasibility adds six agents that read the protocol, CTMS site history, returned questionnaires, public trial registries and licensed patient counts, rank every country and site with a cited reason, and forecast last patient in from P10 to P90.

How does it check what sites claim in their feasibility questionnaires?

The questionnaire reader compares each site's eligible-patient claim with what the site actually screened on past studies and reports the ratio. A claim is counted at most 2× the site's history until the site confirms it, and follow-up questions are drafted for sites with missing answers or claims far above their history — a person sends them.

How does it forecast enrollment and last patient in?

It runs 2,000 simulations in which each site opens when its approval path allows and enrolls at its own past rate, and shows the optimistic (P10), most likely (P50) and cautious (P90) last patient in. Move a country between lead, core and back-up, or change a weight, and the forecast is recalculated on the spot.

Does it find competing trials near our sites?

Yes. The competing-trial scanner reads public registries for recruiting studies, marks each as same or different population with the reason, and counts same-population studies per country and within the radius you set — 25 km by default. Different-population studies never count against a site.

Does it use patient-level data?

No. Eligible patients a year come from licensed real-world counts, with a minimum cell size of 11, and the criteria applied in protocol order. Every number shows its data cut.

Do people stay in control of site selection?

Yes. The agents propose; they never decide. Country managers review their sites and can swap or add one with a reason, the study lead approves the country allocation, and the feasibility lead decides each site and signs the final list, which is filed to the trial master file with every rationale.

What happens when the protocol is amended?

Add the amendment and re-run. The agents re-read the criteria, recount the patient pool, re-score every site and show what changes — eligible patients by country, site proposals and last patient in. Nothing reaches the plan until the feasibility lead applies it.

How long does it take to go live?

The Agentic Solution Engine builds and deploys it from your requirements and documents — your feasibility questionnaire, CTMS history and a past study's protocol — and it goes live once every quality gate has passed. We will walk you through it on one of your own studies first.

See it on
your next study.

We'll run Clinical Trial Feasibility on a past study of yours — its protocol, questionnaires and site history.