14 Clinical Trials for Various Conditions
Background: Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a genetic disease that causes the body to produce abnormal ( sickled ) red blood cells. SCD can cause anemia and life-threatening complications in the lungs, heart, kidney, and nerves. People with SCD are also at increased risk of forming blood clots in the veins and lungs, but the standard treatments for these clots can cause increased bleeding in people with SCD. Better treatments are needed. Objective: To test a drug (fostamatinib) in people with SCD. Eligibility: People aged 18 to 65 with SCD. Design: Participants will have 6 clinic visits over 12 weeks. Each visit will be 2 to 3 hours. Participants will be screened. They will have a physical exam with blood tests. They will tell the researchers about the medications they take. Fostamatinib is a tablet taken by mouth. Participants will take the drug at home, twice a day, for up to 6 weeks. Participants will have a clinic visit every 2 weeks while they are taking the drug. At each visit they will have a physical exam with blood tests. They will talk about any side effects the drug may be causing. If they are tolerating the drug well after the first 2 weeks, they may begin taking a higher dose. Participants will have a final visit 4 weeks after they stop taking the drug. They will have a physical exam and blood tests; they will be checked for any side effects of the drug.
Sickle cell disease (SCD) is an inherited disorder with chronic multi-system manifestations affecting 100,000 individuals in the US, largely of minority origin and associated with substantial morbidity, premature mortality, individual suffering, healthcare costs and loss of productivity. Disease modifying treatments such as hydroxyurea, chronic blood transfusion and curative bone marrow transplantation are offered to patients based on physician preference and current practice informed by clinical trials. Decision aids are tools that could help translate evidence from these sources into practice by helping clinicians involve patients in making deliberate choices based on accessible information about the options available and their outcomes and to help them make decisions based on their values and preferences. The overarching goal of this project is to implement a web based decision aid individualized to patient characteristics to help patients with SCD achieve more accurate perception of risks and benefits of treatment options and make decisions in congruence with their values and preferences. Investigators will use a randomized controlled trial of the effectiveness of a web-based decision aid to give patients accurate information about risks and benefits of therapies that enable patients to make decisions based on their individual values and preferences.
The purpose of the study is to determine the effectiveness of LOVAZA (fish oil capsules) to decrease inflammation in children and adolescents with Sickle Cell Disease (SCD). It has been found that besides the damage caused by sickle red blood cells themselves, the inflammatory response that occurs in SCD patients could potentially play a significant role in the occurrence of painful episodes or pain crises. The investigators will also study whether the subject/caregiver feels that there is an improvement in the child's quality of life by taking the medication. Besides the effect of LOVAZA on inflammation,the investigators are also testing whether the drug will have a beneficial effect on blood clotting ability (which is known to be increased in SCD) and on the anemia (low red blood cells) that is part of the disease entity.
The primary objectives of this prospective mixed-method interview study are to use semi-structured interviews in parents of sickle cell disease (SCD) patients to describe parental attitudes of research involving genomic sequencing, including concerns about participation and expectations from researchers and to use surveys to quantitatively measure genetic/genomic knowledge, trust in health care provider, and literacy/numeracy ability in parents of children with SCD and adolescents with SCD. Investigators hope to use the results of the planned surveys and interviews to reduce the risk of misunderstanding about DNA and genetic research and build strong relationships between SCD families and researchers in the future, and to design educational information and study materials that will help parents with children with SCD understand important details about DNA and genetic research.
This 12-month study will evaluate the safety and effectiveness of hydroxyurea in treating beta-thalassemia, a type of anemia caused by defective hemoglobin (the oxygen-carrying pigment in blood). Hemoglobin is composed of two protein chains-alpha globin chains and beta globin chains; patients with beta-thalassemia do not make beta globin. Patients often require frequent red blood cell transfusions. This leads to iron overload, which, in turn, requires iron chelation therapy (removal of iron from the blood). Some drugs, including hydroxyurea, can stimulate production of a third type of protein chain called gamma chains. In the womb, the fetus makes this type of protein instead of beta globin. It is not until after birth, when the fetus no longer produces gamma globin that the beta globin deficiency becomes apparent. Gamma chain synthesis improves hemoglobin and red blood cell production, correcting the anemia. This study will determine if and at what dose hydroxyurea treatment reduces patients' need for red blood cell transfusions and whether certain factors might predict which patients are likely benefit from this treatment. Patients 15 years and older with moderately severe beta-thalassemia may be eligible for this study. Participants will take hydroxyurea daily at a dose calculated according to the patient's body size. Blood will be drawn weekly to measure blood cell and platelet counts. The drug dosage may be increased after 12 weeks of treatment and again after 24 weeks if the white cell and platelet counts remain stable. Patients who respond dramatically to treatment may continue to receive hydroxyurea for up to 3 years.
This study will evaluate the safety and effectiveness of 5-azacytidine and phenylbutyrate for treating thalassemia major. Patients with this disease have abnormal production of hemoglobin (the oxygen-carrying protein in red blood cells), which leads to red blood cell destruction. As a result, patients require frequent red cell transfusions over many years. Because of these transfusions, however, excess iron is deposited in various body organs-such as the heart, liver, thyroid gland and, in men, the testes-impairing their function. Fetal hemoglobin-a type of hemoglobin that is produced during fetal and infant life-can substitute for adult hemoglobin and increase the levels of red cells in the body. After infancy, however, this type of hemoglobin is no longer produced in large quantities. 5-azacytidine can increase fetal hemoglobin levels, but this drug can damage DNA, which in turn can increase the risk of cancer. This study will try to lessen the harmful effects of 5-azacytidine by using only one or two doses of it, followed by long-term therapy with phenylbutyrate, a drug that may be as effective as 5-azacytidine with less harmful side effects. Patients 18 years of age and older with severe thalassemia major may be eligible for this study. Before beginning treatment, candidates will have a medical history and physical examination, blood tests, chest X-ray, electrocardiogram (EKG), bone marrow biopsy (removal of a small sample of bone marrow from the hip for microscopic examination) and whole-body magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). For the biopsy, the area of the hip is anesthetized and a special needle is inserted to draw bone marrow from the hipbone. For the MRI scan, a strong magnetic field is used to produce images that will identify sites where the body is making red blood cells. During this procedure, the patient lies on a table in a narrow cylinder containing a magnetic field. Earplugs are placed in the ears to muffle the loud thumping sounds the machine makes when the magnetic fields are being switched. An intravenous (IV) catheter (flexible tube inserted into a vein) is placed in a large vein of the patient's neck, chest or arm for infusion of 5-azacytidine at a constant rate over 4 days. Patients who do not respond to this first dose of 5-azacytidine will be given the drug again after about 50 days. If they do not respond to the second dose, alternate treatments will have to be considered. Patients who respond to 5-azacytidine will begin taking phenylbutyrate on the 14th day after 5-azacytidine was started. They will take about 10 large pills 3 times a day, continuing for as long as the treatment is beneficial. All patients will be hospitalized for at least 6 days starting with the beginning of 5-azacytidine therapy. Those who are well enough may then be discharged and continue treatment as an outpatient. Patients will be monitored with blood tests daily for 2 weeks and then will be seen weekly for about another 5 weeks. Bone marrow biopsies will be repeated 6 days after treatment begins and again at 2 weeks and 7 weeks. MRI will be repeated 7 weeks after treatment begins. After 7 weeks, patients will be seen at 3-month intervals. Bone marrow biopsies will be done every 6 months for the first 3 years after treatment. Patients will have red cell transfusions as needed and chelation therapy to remove excess iron.
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the long-term safety and efficacy of EDIT-301 in participants with severe sickle cell disease (SCD) or transfusion-dependent β-thalassemia (TDT) who have received EDIT-301.
Background: Sickle cell disease (SCD) is an inherited blood disorder. The disease affects the ability of red blood cells to carry oxygen; this in turn can injure organs including the heart, lungs, and kidneys. SCD can lead to serious illness and death. Treatments such as bone marrow transplants and gene therapies can cure SCD, but they are not widely available. Current drug treatments for SCD are not always effective. This natural history study will examine how a study drug (mitapivat) affects red blood cells in people with SCD. Objective: To learn how mitapivat affects red blood cells in people with SCD. Eligibility: People with SCD who are enrolled in the parent study, NIH protocol IRB001565-H. Design: Procedures for this study will be done during visits already scheduled for the parent study. Participants will have additional blood drawn during study visits. The additional amount will be about 3.5 teaspoons. Participants will undergo a test called near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) up to 9 times. Probes will be placed on their skin. A blood pressure cuff will be placed on their arm. The cuff will be filled with air for up to 5 minutes and then released. Participants may be asked to breathe at a certain rate or to hold their breath during these measurements. NIRS measures oxygen levels, blood flow, and the makeup of skin and muscle. Researchers will draw additional information for this study from participants medical records.
This clinical trial is a Phase 2 study that will evaluate the safety and clinical activity of etavopivat in patients with thalassemia or sickle cell disease and test how well etavopivat works to lower the number of red blood cell transfusions required and increase hemoglobin.
The goal of this clinical research study is to find out about the safety and effects of a drug called panobinostat when given to adults with sickle cell disease. Panobinostat is a pan histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor. HDAC inhibitors have been shown to significantly increase hemoglobin F induction, which is well documented to improve outcomes in sickle cell disease. HDAC inhibitors are also known to potently inhibit cell-specific inflammation, which is a primary contributor to the debilitating effects of sickle cell disease. Given the relevance of these mechanisms of action in SCD, panobinostat may prove to contribute significantly to the management of SCD patients, a population in critical need of further effective treatment options.
The primary objective of this study is to better understand factors contributing to variations in hydroxyurea (HU) adherence behavior in adolescents and young adults (AYA) with sickle cell disease (SCD). To meet this objective, the researchers will conduct a prospective cohort study to determine the longitudinal relationship between HU adherence and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) overtime among AYA with SCD. The long-term goal of this research is to promote medication adherence behavior and improve health outcomes in AYA with SCD.
The primary objective of this study is to evaluate a potential behavioral intervention (MED-Go app). To meet this objective, the researchers will conduct a pilot randomized controlled trial to test the feasibility and acceptability of MED-Go app in adolescents and young adults (AYA) with sickle cell disease (SCD). The long-term goal of this research is to promote medication adherence behavior and improve health outcomes in AYA with SCD.
The overarching goal of this proposal is to identify modifiable behavioral strategies based on patient-reported outcomes (PROs) and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) that will improve hydroxyurea (HU) adherence among adolescents and young adults with sickle cell disease (SCD). In this proposed study, we intend to test the functionality of a PROs-toolbox feature, which will be integrated into our existing smartphone application platform (SCD-app), over a 24-week period in a cohort of SCD patients and their caregivers.
This project addresses three important research questions. First, adolescents and young adults (AYA) with sickle cell disease (SCD) and their parents/caregivers will be engaged to inform the (1) domains of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) most important to them, (2) frequency at which they are willing to complete them, and (3) other procedures related to the use, uptake and effect of the HU-Go app as a tool to improve hydroxyurea (HU) adherence. Second, this study seeks to utilize novel modern mobile technology using a multi-functional personalized platform to improve adherence to HU and measure HRQOL in youth with SCD, using NIH-endorsed PROMIS® measures, based on a conceptual model with predefined behavioral targets and mediators. Third, we plan to assess HRQOL changes and identify modifiable behavioral strategies that could serve as surrogates or predictors for HU adherence. This real-time feedback might empower self-directed changes in behavior that could improve adherence to HU.