PATIENTS living with a rare life-threatening condition are being recruited for a major clinical trial.People with vasculitis in Ipswich will be asked to participate, with the aim of improving treatment for the UK's 5,000 sufferers.
PATIENTS living with a rare life-threatening condition are being recruited for a major clinical trial.
People with vasculitis in Ipswich will be asked to participate, with the aim of improving treatment for the UK's 5,000 sufferers.
The five-year trial at Ipswich Hospital, run under the direction of Dr Richard Watts, is part of a UK-wide study funded by a £212,000 grant from the Arthritis Research Campaign.
Vasculitis is a rheumatic condition that leads to blood vessels becoming inflamed, and can affect all parts of the body, including the head, skin, joints, kidneys, heart and lungs.
In severe cases it can result in irreversible organ damage and internal bleeding, and can sometimes be fatal.
Consultant rheumatologist Dr Watts said: "Although better treatment has considerably improved survival rates, there is still room for improvement.
"What we want to do with this study is to come up with a more rapid and effective response to treatment which will improve the outlook for patients suffering from a "flare" in systemic vasculitis.
"Cyclophosphamide is the most effective drug for therapy of severe active vasculitis, improving the outcome considerably, but unfortunately some patients still die in the early stages of their disease. A slow response to standard therapy might partly explain this."
A total of 50 patients from around the UK aged between 18 and 70 who are suffering from different types of vasculitis will be recruited onto the trial, which will be co-ordinated at the City Hospital, Birmingham.
They will be split into two groups; one group receiving the standard dose of cyclophosphamide, and another other group who will receiving a higher dose given for a shorter period of time to try to induce remission, followed by treatment with a less toxic milder drug.
The aim is to turn off active disease as soon as possible to limit organ damage.
For more information contact the Arthritis Research Campaign on 01246 541107.
Weblinks:
www.arc.org.uk
http://rheumb.bham.ac.uk
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