Jo Best
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Hello everyone, this is my first post on the forum, so please bear with and I expect someone may beat me to it.
Update by UK charity Invest in ME Research on their Rituximab Research (B-cell studies and UK clinical trial).
Full statement here - http://future.cofeforme.eu/IIME-Newslet-1611-03.shtml
Extracts -
Source - Invest in ME Research Centre of Excellence for ME - http://future.cofeforme.eu/IIME-Newslet-1611-03.shtml
Update by UK charity Invest in ME Research on their Rituximab Research (B-cell studies and UK clinical trial).
Full statement here - http://future.cofeforme.eu/IIME-Newslet-1611-03.shtml
Extracts -
In 2013, following the BRMEC3 Colloquium, Invest in ME and its supporters honoured the commitment made by the charity a year earlier, at the IIME7 conference in 2012, to initiate a UK rituximab trial project.
The work progressed with the team at UCL where it was decided early on that a preliminary B-cell study ought to be performed in order to try to replicate the B cell findings of Bansal et al. and to determine likely responders to the drug. This was something that our advisor and the UCL department thought was necessary. This was initiated in 2014. PhD student Fane Mensah is now continuing this B-cell research with Dr Jo Cambridge – again funded by IiMER.
After preliminary B-cell study was underway there was an internal reorganisation in the clinical trials unit (CTU) at UCL which resulted in the principal investigator being moved away from the project and the CTU being downsized. When this was communicated to the charity then we began to look for alternative solutions.
The trial was advertised on our web site in order for interested parties to apply to the charity and at the same time the charity actively continued to look for a place for the trial as the B-cell research continued.
The preliminary B-cell research paper was published in 2016 click here.
After an expression of interest from UEA/IFR it was agreed to relocate the rituximab trial to Norwich Research Park, home for the UK Centre of Excellence for ME.
In January Dr Oystein Fluge and his team will visit Norwich to work with the UK researchers in planning the trial - click here.
The original target for the rituximab trial was set by our advisor back in 2013. Having shown great vision and determination in looking at other areas of research linked to their phase III trial experiences and developing an incremental, evolutionary method of research then we feel the Norwegian Haukeland researchers have exactly the model of how good research should proceed. With the progress made by the Norwegian researchers and the increased knowledge now gained by them it will be interesting to see how the UK trial planning will progress with this new collaboration.
Source - Invest in ME Research Centre of Excellence for ME - http://future.cofeforme.eu/IIME-Newslet-1611-03.shtml