CHANGE MANAGEMENT OF DRUG PRODUCTS REGISTRATION CONDITIONS: NEW ICH Q12 GUIDELINE

Introduction of amendments to the registration dossier is the responsibility of the marketing application holder (MAH). Increased knowledge on pharmaceuticals, its manufacturing and control processes can reduce the number of documents submitted to the regulatory authorities. The existing requirements establishing the procedure for the introduction of amendments differ in terms of change classification, period of notification of regulatory authorities, ways of conformity validation of pharmaceutical properties, etc. ICH proposed draft guideline Q12 «Technical and Regulatory Considerations for Pharmaceutical Product Lifecycle Management» which covers the problem of harmonization of regulatory approaches to the changes provided in the «Quality» section of CTD during the commercial phase of drug life cycle. The new guideline can be considered as the continuation and elaboration of previous ICH documents. The article provides explanations on the main provisions and regulatory mechanisms introduced by the draft guideline ICH Q12: categorization of post-approval changes, established conditions, post-approval change management protocol, and drug product lifecycle management.