Thomas Lang (EMA BSWP / AGES) - Setting the Scene: The regulatory landscape – a journey through time
Bruno Boulanger (Pharmalex) - Analytical similarity and comparability: what is the question ?
Johanna Mielke (Bayer) - The assessment of quality attributes for biosimilars: a statistical perspective on current practice and a proposal
This webinar will discuss statistical requirements for the assessment of analytical comparability and similarity assessments, for example between biosimilars and reference products or before and after manufacturing changes. This topic has been the subject of a recent EMA reflection paper and an EFSPI working group. New strategies are proposed as an alternative to mean comparisons and include the assessment of ranges, inferential approaches or the use of Bayesian methods.
Registration:
This webinar is free for PSI members to attend but has a charge of £20 for non-members. To register please click here.
Thomas Lang
(EMA BSWP / AGES)
Thomas Lang is biostatistician by training. He spent eight years in academic research, followed by three years in clinical research in the pharmaceutical industry. He currently works as senior statistical assessor for the Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety. For more than nine years he was a member of the Scientific Advice Working Party at EMA. In his current role of a member of the Biostatistics Working Party Thomas acted as rapporteur for the EMA Reflection paper on statistical methodology for the comparative assessment of quality attributes in drug development.
Bruno Boulanger (Pharmalex)
Bruno has 25 years of experience in several areas of pharmaceutical research and industry including discovery, toxicology, CMC and early clinical phases. He holds various positions in Europe and in USA. Bruno joined UCB Pharma in 2007 as Director of Exploratory Statistics. Bruno is also since 2000 Lecturer at the Université of Liège, in the School of Pharmacy, teaching Design of Experiments and Statistics. He is also a USP Expert, member of the Committee of Experts in Statistics since 2010. Bruno has authored or co-authored more than 100 publications in applied statistics.
Johanna Mielke (Bayer)
Johanna studied Statistics at TU Dortmund University (Germany). Afterwards, she joined the Statistical Methodology Group at Novartis in Basel (Switzerland) as a Doctoral Candidate. Her research was focussed on the development of statistical methodologies for clinical biosimilar development. After completing her Ph.D. in 2018, Johanna started to work as a Data Scientist at Bayer in Wuppertal (Germany).
Scientific Meetings
PSI Scientific Committee Webinar: Statistical Challenges in Analytical Comparability and Biosimilarity Assessment
Thomas Lang (EMA BSWP / AGES) - Setting the Scene: The regulatory landscape – a journey through time
Bruno Boulanger (Pharmalex) - Analytical similarity and comparability: what is the question ?
Johanna Mielke (Bayer) - The assessment of quality attributes for biosimilars: a statistical perspective on current practice and a proposal
This webinar will discuss statistical requirements for the assessment of analytical comparability and similarity assessments, for example between biosimilars and reference products or before and after manufacturing changes. This topic has been the subject of a recent EMA reflection paper and an EFSPI working group. New strategies are proposed as an alternative to mean comparisons and include the assessment of ranges, inferential approaches or the use of Bayesian methods.
Registration:
This webinar is free for PSI members to attend but has a charge of £20 for non-members. To register please click here.
Thomas Lang
(EMA BSWP / AGES)
Thomas Lang is biostatistician by training. He spent eight years in academic research, followed by three years in clinical research in the pharmaceutical industry. He currently works as senior statistical assessor for the Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety. For more than nine years he was a member of the Scientific Advice Working Party at EMA. In his current role of a member of the Biostatistics Working Party Thomas acted as rapporteur for the EMA Reflection paper on statistical methodology for the comparative assessment of quality attributes in drug development.
Bruno Boulanger (Pharmalex)
Bruno has 25 years of experience in several areas of pharmaceutical research and industry including discovery, toxicology, CMC and early clinical phases. He holds various positions in Europe and in USA. Bruno joined UCB Pharma in 2007 as Director of Exploratory Statistics. Bruno is also since 2000 Lecturer at the Université of Liège, in the School of Pharmacy, teaching Design of Experiments and Statistics. He is also a USP Expert, member of the Committee of Experts in Statistics since 2010. Bruno has authored or co-authored more than 100 publications in applied statistics.
Johanna Mielke (Bayer)
Johanna studied Statistics at TU Dortmund University (Germany). Afterwards, she joined the Statistical Methodology Group at Novartis in Basel (Switzerland) as a Doctoral Candidate. Her research was focussed on the development of statistical methodologies for clinical biosimilar development. After completing her Ph.D. in 2018, Johanna started to work as a Data Scientist at Bayer in Wuppertal (Germany).
Training Courses
PSI Scientific Committee Webinar: Statistical Challenges in Analytical Comparability and Biosimilarity Assessment
Thomas Lang (EMA BSWP / AGES) - Setting the Scene: The regulatory landscape – a journey through time
Bruno Boulanger (Pharmalex) - Analytical similarity and comparability: what is the question ?
Johanna Mielke (Bayer) - The assessment of quality attributes for biosimilars: a statistical perspective on current practice and a proposal
This webinar will discuss statistical requirements for the assessment of analytical comparability and similarity assessments, for example between biosimilars and reference products or before and after manufacturing changes. This topic has been the subject of a recent EMA reflection paper and an EFSPI working group. New strategies are proposed as an alternative to mean comparisons and include the assessment of ranges, inferential approaches or the use of Bayesian methods.
Registration:
This webinar is free for PSI members to attend but has a charge of £20 for non-members. To register please click here.
Thomas Lang
(EMA BSWP / AGES)
Thomas Lang is biostatistician by training. He spent eight years in academic research, followed by three years in clinical research in the pharmaceutical industry. He currently works as senior statistical assessor for the Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety. For more than nine years he was a member of the Scientific Advice Working Party at EMA. In his current role of a member of the Biostatistics Working Party Thomas acted as rapporteur for the EMA Reflection paper on statistical methodology for the comparative assessment of quality attributes in drug development.
Bruno Boulanger (Pharmalex)
Bruno has 25 years of experience in several areas of pharmaceutical research and industry including discovery, toxicology, CMC and early clinical phases. He holds various positions in Europe and in USA. Bruno joined UCB Pharma in 2007 as Director of Exploratory Statistics. Bruno is also since 2000 Lecturer at the Université of Liège, in the School of Pharmacy, teaching Design of Experiments and Statistics. He is also a USP Expert, member of the Committee of Experts in Statistics since 2010. Bruno has authored or co-authored more than 100 publications in applied statistics.
Johanna Mielke (Bayer)
Johanna studied Statistics at TU Dortmund University (Germany). Afterwards, she joined the Statistical Methodology Group at Novartis in Basel (Switzerland) as a Doctoral Candidate. Her research was focussed on the development of statistical methodologies for clinical biosimilar development. After completing her Ph.D. in 2018, Johanna started to work as a Data Scientist at Bayer in Wuppertal (Germany).
Journal Club
PSI Scientific Committee Webinar: Statistical Challenges in Analytical Comparability and Biosimilarity Assessment
Thomas Lang (EMA BSWP / AGES) - Setting the Scene: The regulatory landscape – a journey through time
Bruno Boulanger (Pharmalex) - Analytical similarity and comparability: what is the question ?
Johanna Mielke (Bayer) - The assessment of quality attributes for biosimilars: a statistical perspective on current practice and a proposal
This webinar will discuss statistical requirements for the assessment of analytical comparability and similarity assessments, for example between biosimilars and reference products or before and after manufacturing changes. This topic has been the subject of a recent EMA reflection paper and an EFSPI working group. New strategies are proposed as an alternative to mean comparisons and include the assessment of ranges, inferential approaches or the use of Bayesian methods.
Registration:
This webinar is free for PSI members to attend but has a charge of £20 for non-members. To register please click here.
Thomas Lang
(EMA BSWP / AGES)
Thomas Lang is biostatistician by training. He spent eight years in academic research, followed by three years in clinical research in the pharmaceutical industry. He currently works as senior statistical assessor for the Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety. For more than nine years he was a member of the Scientific Advice Working Party at EMA. In his current role of a member of the Biostatistics Working Party Thomas acted as rapporteur for the EMA Reflection paper on statistical methodology for the comparative assessment of quality attributes in drug development.
Bruno Boulanger (Pharmalex)
Bruno has 25 years of experience in several areas of pharmaceutical research and industry including discovery, toxicology, CMC and early clinical phases. He holds various positions in Europe and in USA. Bruno joined UCB Pharma in 2007 as Director of Exploratory Statistics. Bruno is also since 2000 Lecturer at the Université of Liège, in the School of Pharmacy, teaching Design of Experiments and Statistics. He is also a USP Expert, member of the Committee of Experts in Statistics since 2010. Bruno has authored or co-authored more than 100 publications in applied statistics.
Johanna Mielke (Bayer)
Johanna studied Statistics at TU Dortmund University (Germany). Afterwards, she joined the Statistical Methodology Group at Novartis in Basel (Switzerland) as a Doctoral Candidate. Her research was focussed on the development of statistical methodologies for clinical biosimilar development. After completing her Ph.D. in 2018, Johanna started to work as a Data Scientist at Bayer in Wuppertal (Germany).
Webinars
PSI Scientific Committee Webinar: Statistical Challenges in Analytical Comparability and Biosimilarity Assessment
Thomas Lang (EMA BSWP / AGES) - Setting the Scene: The regulatory landscape – a journey through time
Bruno Boulanger (Pharmalex) - Analytical similarity and comparability: what is the question ?
Johanna Mielke (Bayer) - The assessment of quality attributes for biosimilars: a statistical perspective on current practice and a proposal
This webinar will discuss statistical requirements for the assessment of analytical comparability and similarity assessments, for example between biosimilars and reference products or before and after manufacturing changes. This topic has been the subject of a recent EMA reflection paper and an EFSPI working group. New strategies are proposed as an alternative to mean comparisons and include the assessment of ranges, inferential approaches or the use of Bayesian methods.
Registration:
This webinar is free for PSI members to attend but has a charge of £20 for non-members. To register please click here.
Thomas Lang
(EMA BSWP / AGES)
Thomas Lang is biostatistician by training. He spent eight years in academic research, followed by three years in clinical research in the pharmaceutical industry. He currently works as senior statistical assessor for the Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety. For more than nine years he was a member of the Scientific Advice Working Party at EMA. In his current role of a member of the Biostatistics Working Party Thomas acted as rapporteur for the EMA Reflection paper on statistical methodology for the comparative assessment of quality attributes in drug development.
Bruno Boulanger (Pharmalex)
Bruno has 25 years of experience in several areas of pharmaceutical research and industry including discovery, toxicology, CMC and early clinical phases. He holds various positions in Europe and in USA. Bruno joined UCB Pharma in 2007 as Director of Exploratory Statistics. Bruno is also since 2000 Lecturer at the Université of Liège, in the School of Pharmacy, teaching Design of Experiments and Statistics. He is also a USP Expert, member of the Committee of Experts in Statistics since 2010. Bruno has authored or co-authored more than 100 publications in applied statistics.
Johanna Mielke (Bayer)
Johanna studied Statistics at TU Dortmund University (Germany). Afterwards, she joined the Statistical Methodology Group at Novartis in Basel (Switzerland) as a Doctoral Candidate. Her research was focussed on the development of statistical methodologies for clinical biosimilar development. After completing her Ph.D. in 2018, Johanna started to work as a Data Scientist at Bayer in Wuppertal (Germany).
Careers Meetings
PSI Scientific Committee Webinar: Statistical Challenges in Analytical Comparability and Biosimilarity Assessment
Thomas Lang (EMA BSWP / AGES) - Setting the Scene: The regulatory landscape – a journey through time
Bruno Boulanger (Pharmalex) - Analytical similarity and comparability: what is the question ?
Johanna Mielke (Bayer) - The assessment of quality attributes for biosimilars: a statistical perspective on current practice and a proposal
This webinar will discuss statistical requirements for the assessment of analytical comparability and similarity assessments, for example between biosimilars and reference products or before and after manufacturing changes. This topic has been the subject of a recent EMA reflection paper and an EFSPI working group. New strategies are proposed as an alternative to mean comparisons and include the assessment of ranges, inferential approaches or the use of Bayesian methods.
Registration:
This webinar is free for PSI members to attend but has a charge of £20 for non-members. To register please click here.
Thomas Lang
(EMA BSWP / AGES)
Thomas Lang is biostatistician by training. He spent eight years in academic research, followed by three years in clinical research in the pharmaceutical industry. He currently works as senior statistical assessor for the Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety. For more than nine years he was a member of the Scientific Advice Working Party at EMA. In his current role of a member of the Biostatistics Working Party Thomas acted as rapporteur for the EMA Reflection paper on statistical methodology for the comparative assessment of quality attributes in drug development.
Bruno Boulanger (Pharmalex)
Bruno has 25 years of experience in several areas of pharmaceutical research and industry including discovery, toxicology, CMC and early clinical phases. He holds various positions in Europe and in USA. Bruno joined UCB Pharma in 2007 as Director of Exploratory Statistics. Bruno is also since 2000 Lecturer at the Université of Liège, in the School of Pharmacy, teaching Design of Experiments and Statistics. He is also a USP Expert, member of the Committee of Experts in Statistics since 2010. Bruno has authored or co-authored more than 100 publications in applied statistics.
Johanna Mielke (Bayer)
Johanna studied Statistics at TU Dortmund University (Germany). Afterwards, she joined the Statistical Methodology Group at Novartis in Basel (Switzerland) as a Doctoral Candidate. Her research was focussed on the development of statistical methodologies for clinical biosimilar development. After completing her Ph.D. in 2018, Johanna started to work as a Data Scientist at Bayer in Wuppertal (Germany).
Upcoming Events
Joint PSI/EFSPI Visualisation SIG 'Wonderful Wednesday' Webinars
Our monthly webinar explores examples of innovative data visualisations relevant to our day to day work. Each month a new dataset is provided from a clinical trial or other relevant example, and participants are invited to submit a graphic that communicates interesting and relevant characteristics of the data.
Topic: R Package Basics.
Our monthly webinar series allows attendees to gain practical knowledge and skills in open-source coding and tools, with a focus on applications in the pharmaceutical industry. This month’s session, “R Package Basics,” will introduce the fundamentals of working with R packages—covering how to install, load, and manage them effectively to support data analysis and reproducible research. The session will provide a solid starting point, clarify common misconceptions, and offer valuable resources for continued learning.
Date: Ongoing 6 month cycle beginning late April/early May 2026
Are you a member of PSI looking to further your career or help develop others - why not sign up to the PSI Mentoring scheme? You can expand your network, improve your leadership skills and learn from more senior colleagues in the industry.
PSI Book Club Lunch and Learn: Communicating with Clarity and Confidence
If you have read Ros Atkins’ book The Art of Explanation or want to listen to the BBC’s ‘Communicator in Chief’, you are invited to join the PSI Book Club Lunch and Learn, to discuss the content and application with the author, Ros Atkins. Having written the book within the context of the news industry, Ros is keen to hear how we have applied the ideas as statisticians within drug development and clinical trials. There will be dedicated time during the webinar to ASK THE AUTHOR any questions – don’t miss out on this exclusive PSI Book Club event!
Haven’t read the book yet? Pick up a copy today and join us.
Explanation - identifying and communicating what we want to say - is described as an art, in the title of his book. However, the creativity comes from Ros’ discernment in identifying and describing a clear step-by-step process to follow and practice. Readers can learn Ros’ rules, developed and polished throughout his career as a journalist, to help communicate complex written or spoken information clearly.
PSI Training Course: Effective Leadership – the keys to growing your leadership capabilities
This course will consist of three online half-day workshops. The first will be aimed at building trust, the backbone of leadership and a key to becoming effective. This is key to building a solid foundation.
The second will be on improving communication as a technical leader. This workshop will focus on communication strategies for different stakeholders and will involve tips on effective communication and how to develop the skills of active listening, coaching and what improv can teach us about good communication.
The final workshop will bring these two components together to help leaders become more influential. This will also focus on how to use Steven Covey’s 7-Habits, in particular Habits 4, 5 and 6, which are called the habits of communication.
The workshops will be interactive, allowing you to practice the concepts discussed. There will be plenty of time for questions and discussion. There will also be reflective time where you can think about what you are learning and how you might experiment with it.