Chief Medical Officer

The Phase Gate
Graveyard

90% of drug candidates die before reaching patients. Billions buried at every phase gate. Can you see which of your drugs are headed for the graveyard?

The Phase Gate Graveyard

Where 90% of drug candidates go to die—and billions get buried

Capital Buried
$0M
100%
survive
Preclinical
Cost: $2.5M
100
Drug Candidates
enter the gauntlet
63%
survive
Phase I
Cost: $15M
RIPABC-101
RIPXYZ-202
RIPQRS-303
37% dead
31%
survive
Phase II
Cost: $58M
RIPDEF-404
RIPGHI-505
RIPJKL-606
RIPMNO-707
32% dead
12%
survive
Phase III
Cost: $314M
RIPPQR-808
RIPSTU-909
19% dead
10%
survive
FDA Review
Cost: $48M
RIPVWX-010
2% dead
10
reach FDA approval
out of every 100 that started
90%
Drugs fail
12 years
Avg. development time
$2.6B
Avg. cost to approval
5.9%
Oncology success rate

The Billion-Dollar Burial Ground

Every failed phase transition isn't just a scientific setback—it's capital permanently interred.

The Phase II Massacre

Phase II is where dreams die. 69% of drugs that enter Phase II never make it out. That's $58M average per burial.

69%
fail in Phase II alone

The Phase III Price Tag

By the time a drug fails in Phase III, you've invested $314M on average. One failure can crater your quarterly guidance.

$314M
average Phase III cost

Pipeline Visibility Gap

Your board sees pipeline counts. They don't see probability-weighted value. A "15-drug pipeline" means nothing without survival rates.

15 vs 1.5
pipeline count vs expected approvals

The Oncology Graveyard

Oncology has a 5.9% success rate from Phase I to approval. If you're in oncology, 94% of your pipeline is destined for graves.

5.9%
oncology success rate
The Hidden Cost

You Report Pipeline Counts. Investors Want Risk-Adjusted Value.

A Phase I drug and a Phase III drug are not equal. But your board deck probably treats them the same. Without probability-weighted pipeline visualization, you're presenting fantasy, not reality.

Analyst asks: 'What's your pipeline worth?'

You present: '15 drugs in development'

They calculate: '15 × 10% = 1.5 expected approvals'

Stock drops: 'Pipeline is overvalued'

Phase Transition Survival Rates

Phase I → Phase II63%
Phase II → Phase III31%
Phase III → NDA/BLA58%
NDA/BLA → Approval90%
Overall Success10%

Source: BIO/Informa Pharma Intelligence Clinical Development Success Rates

The SlideStrike Solution

See Which Drugs Are Headed for the Graveyard

Risk-adjusted pipeline visualization that tells the real story of your drug portfolio.

Probability-Weighted

Risk-Adjusted Pipeline

Every drug shown with its phase-specific success probability. A Phase III drug isn't worth the same as Phase I. Your board will finally see reality.

See Pipeline View
Phase Transition

Gate-by-Gate Tracker

Real-time visibility into phase transitions. See which drugs are approaching gates, which are stalling, and which are showing red flags.

See Gate Analysis
Capital Allocation

Buried vs. Invested

Track exactly how much capital has been buried in failed drugs vs. invested in survivors. Show investors you're not throwing money into graves.

See Capital Flow
Therapeutic Area

Graveyard by Indication

Some graveyards are bigger than others. Oncology, CNS, immunology—see survival rates by therapeutic area and adjust expectations accordingly.

See TA Analysis

Pipeline Metrics That Actually Matter

Stop counting drugs. Start measuring probability-weighted value.

Risk-Adjusted NPV

Pipeline value weighted by phase-specific success probability. The only honest pipeline metric.

Phase Transition Rate

Your historical success rate at each gate vs. industry benchmarks. Are you better or worse?

Time-to-Phase

How long drugs spend in each phase. Delays predict failures. Speed predicts survival.

Capital at Risk

How much is invested in drugs currently at high-risk phases. Board needs to know exposure.

Expected Approvals

Pipeline count × historical success rate = what will actually reach patients.

Graveyard Cost

Total capital buried in failed drugs this year. The honest cost of R&D.

Real CMO Scenarios

The Analyst Day Pipeline Presentation

The Problem

Analyst day is next month. You need to present pipeline value. Your IR team is counting drugs. Analysts will discount by 90%. You look either naive or deceptive.

The SlideStrike Solution

SlideStrike generates risk-adjusted pipeline view automatically. Phase-weighted NPV, expected approvals, historical transition rates. Analysts see you understand the graveyard. Credibility preserved.

The Phase III Failure Announcement

The Problem

Your lead Phase III just failed. Board meeting tomorrow. How do you explain $340M buried? How do you show the pipeline can recover?

The SlideStrike Solution

One slide showing capital flow: invested vs. buried vs. remaining. Another showing risk-adjusted portfolio value without the failed drug. Board sees the hit is priced in. Forward guidance protected.

The M&A Pipeline Valuation

The Problem

Acquirer wants to see your pipeline. They are sending their own analysts. Your internal valuations will be shredded if they are not risk-adjusted.

The SlideStrike Solution

Export risk-adjusted pipeline analysis directly from SlideStrike. Phase-specific probabilities, indication-specific benchmarks, capital at risk by gate. You look like you know what you have.

Connects to Your R&D Systems

SlideStrike pulls pipeline data from your existing infrastructure.

Pipeline Mgmt

Veeva Vault, Planisware

Portfolio Tools

Clarivate, Evaluate

Clinical Data

Medidata, Oracle

Regulatory

Veeva RIM, MasterControl

Financial

SAP, Oracle Financials

Intelligence

Citeline, GlobalData

Analytics

Spotfire, Power BI

CRM/IR

Salesforce, Ipreo

Pipeline Questions Answered

Real questions from pharmaceutical executives

QHow do you calculate phase success probabilities?

We use industry benchmarks from BIO/Informa studies, adjusted for your specific therapeutic area, indication, and biomarker status.

QCan we customize success rates based on our internal data?

Yes. SlideStrike allows you to input your historical phase transition rates for more accurate portfolio modeling.

QHow does this help with investor communications?

Risk-adjusted pipeline views show investors the real expected value, not just drug counts. This builds credibility and sets realistic expectations.

QCan we model different scenarios?

Yes. SlideStrike supports scenario planning for different success rates, timeline assumptions, and portfolio decisions.

QWhat data sources do you use?

We integrate with clinical trial registries, regulatory databases, and your internal CTMS/portfolio systems.

See Your Pipeline's True Survival Odds

Stop presenting fantasy pipeline counts. Show risk-adjusted reality.

See My Pipeline Analysis
Free 14-day trial
Risk-adjusted NPV
Investor-ready exports
90% of drugs fail. Billions get buried. The question isn't if drugs will die—it's whether you'll see it coming.