Dermatology is a lean but strategically consistent therapeutic area in Brazil. Samba Trials' Q2 2026 landscape scan identified 11 industry-sponsored, actively-recruiting dermatology trials — 1.9% of the 582-trial total. The number is small, but the concentration of mechanism classes running in Brazil right now (IL-17, IL-23, JAK, OX40, anti-IL-31) mirrors the global derm pipeline almost exactly. If your asset is in Phase 2b or Phase 3 for a major inflammatory-dermatology indication, Brazil is a standard geography to include.
The Brazilian derm map is tightly concentrated. Four to six centers enroll the overwhelming majority of patients for multinational derm protocols. That concentration is a double-edged sword: site relationships are everything, but once established they scale across mechanism classes.
Why Brazil for dermatology
- Patient-population scale. Brazil has one of the largest adult populations with moderate-to-severe psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, and hidradenitis suppurativa outside the U.S. and India. The demographics are also more diverse across Fitzpatrick skin types than typical European cohorts — which matters for derm programs where regulatory reviewers increasingly ask for skin-of-color efficacy and photo-endpoint data.
- SUS access creates a biologic-naïve population. Similar to the IBD dynamic: SUS provides biologic therapy for moderate-to-severe psoriasis, but the referral and approval pathway is lengthy, with conservative stepwise requirements. That creates a meaningful biologic-naïve or first-line-biologic population that can be recruited into modern advanced-mechanism protocols at pace.
- Investigator bench with biologic-era muscle memory. São Paulo and Porto Alegre dermatology groups have run psoriasis and atopic dermatitis Phase 3s for AbbVie, Janssen, Lilly, Pfizer, Sanofi/Regeneron, and Novartis across the last decade. Photo-endpoint capture protocols, PASI/IGA central-read workflows, and PRO-scoring in Brazilian Portuguese are all established.
- Small-site private-research-center model. Unlike IBD or oncology (which concentrate at academic centers), dermatology in Brazil uses a hybrid model where specialized private-research centers — CEPIC, Chronos Pesquisa, Integral Pesquisa e Ensino — also enroll at meaningful volume. That gives sponsors more flexibility in the site mix.
Where the dermatology trials run
The Brazilian derm map is smaller than oncology but comparably organized. A well-structured psoriasis or atopic-dermatitis Phase 3 activation typically combines one São Paulo academic site (HC-FMUSP or UNIFESP), one or two private-research-center sites, and HCPA or one of the Porto Alegre hospitals for the RS contingent.
| Center | City / State | Role for derm trials |
|---|---|---|
| Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre (HCPA) | Porto Alegre, RS | 53 active industry trials; academic dermatology service with psoriasis and atopic dermatitis trial track record. |
| Hospital São Lucas da PUCRS | Porto Alegre, RS | 30 trials; dermatology research arm with multinational derm trial participation. |
| CEPIC — Centro Paulista de Investigação Clínica | São Paulo, SP | 14 trials; dedicated clinical-research center with strong dermatology recruitment history. |
| Integral Pesquisa e Ensino | (São Paulo region) | 16 trials; specialized research center with derm-trial pipeline. |
| Chronos Pesquisa Clínica | (Brazilian private-research network) | 11 trials; private-research-center model used for derm enrollment. |
| Hospital Sírio-Libanês | São Paulo, SP | 12 trials; private-academic hybrid with dermatology research capacity. |
Geographically, derm trials cluster in São Paulo (state: 252 trials; metro: 454 site-level records), Rio Grande do Sul (189), Paraná (93), and Santa Catarina (50). Rio de Janeiro (state: 32) and Minas Gerais (75) round out the distribution.
Who's sponsoring dermatology trials in Brazil
Brazil's top-25 industry sponsors with heavy derm pipelines are well-represented: AbbVie (10 total active trials), Janssen Research & Development (28), Eli Lilly (28), Pfizer (19), Sanofi (21), Novartis (33), Bristol-Myers Squibb (24), and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (6). AbbVie's Skyrizi / Rinvoq, Janssen's Tremfya, Lilly's mirikizumab and lebrikizumab, Pfizer's etrasimod and ritlecitinib, Sanofi/Regeneron's Dupixent, and Novartis's Cosentyx / remibrutinib all have Brazilian arms.
Honest framing: these are total active-trial counts in Brazil across all TAs — not derm-specific counts. With only 11 derm trials overall, individual sponsor derm counts are typically 1-2 per sponsor. We don't break sponsor rankings down by TA in the free data. For TA-specific sponsor rankings see the full quarterly landscape report.
Emerging-biotech opening
25% of Brazilian industry trials (148 of 582) come from emerging-biotech sponsors. In dermatology specifically, the next wave of programs — IL-13 subtype-selective, OX40L, IRAK4 degraders, oral TYK2 — is increasingly biotech-driven. Brazilian derm sites are not yet saturated at the emerging-biotech level; first-mover site agreements are still available.
Regulatory path: dermatology-specific considerations
Brazilian regulation runs three parallel tracks: CEP (local), CONEP (central, required for international studies), ANVISA (the drug-specific clinical-trial dossier). Historical end-to-end timelines ran 9-12 months; under Lei 14.874/2024 the target is ~6 months, with well-run multi-track submissions activating in 6-8 months.
Dermatology-specific considerations:
- Photo-endpoint protocol. Central-read photography (PASI, IGA, EASI, IHS4) is standard for modern derm Phase 3s. Brazilian sites have pipelines for this, but photo-handling clauses in the consent form often surface CEP questions about image storage, retention, and de-identification. Address these explicitly.
- Biopsy and skin-sample export. If your protocol includes skin biopsies for biomarker analysis, plan for CONEP authorization and a formal Termo de Transferência de Material Biológico from day one. This is the most common add-on delay for derm protocols.
- PRO-scoring linguistic adaptation. Dermatology PROs (DLQI, POEM, HS-specific instruments, itch NRS) require validated Brazilian Portuguese versions. Most are already validated; confirm before protocol lock to avoid activation delays.
How Samba Trials helps
Samba Trials is the clinical-trials consultancy arm of BioAlma. We work with sponsors before CRO selection, during feasibility, and through site activation:
- TA-specific feasibility memos. A 2-3 week review of your derm protocol against Brazilian site capacity, competing-mechanism trial overlap (critical for psoriasis and atopic dermatitis where multiple programs queue at the same centers), SUS biologic-access landscape for the target indication, and enrollment-timeline ranges.
- Site identification and activation support. Named-center shortlists with PI profiles, active-trial load, historical derm-sponsor relationships, and central-read photography capacity.
- ANVISA submission strategy. Parallel-track planning for CEP/CONEP/ANVISA, dossier review, and biospecimen-export strategy covering skin biopsy, serum biomarker, and photo-endpoint workflows.
Get a dermatology feasibility memo
Send us your protocol synopsis or target indication. We'll return a Brazil-specific feasibility memo within two weeks — named centers, competing-trial overlap, PI candidates, and enrollment ranges.
Request a memo →