Being included in a trial with immunotherapy is a real opportunity to beat cancer. In reality, once home, patients have to monitor side effects, go to a medical lab and control their biology.
Then, patients must return to the hospital to control biology using distinct biomarkers and then move on to the next phase of treatment – the next injection. This is a difficult experience for many, and it is vital to strive to improve the patient’s life.
How can the patient’s experience be improved when participating in IO trials?
The aim is to reconceive the journey the patient experiences when participating in immuno-oncology trials. Cerba Research is now introducing a digital tool developed by Biokortex in the Cerba Healthcare medical lab network.
The idea is to deliver an innovative kind of patient follow-up, where the medical lab close to patients’ homes is networked to the hospital. This will be a digital link that bridges the data between Cerba Research and Gustave Roussy and medical institutes with specific training and biological controls.
So, as a result of this partnership between Cerba Research and Gustave Roussy, clinical trials will be decentralized, which will hopefully improve patients’ experience by better controlling side effects and reducing repeated trips to the hospital.
People will only have to visit the Cerba medical lab with specific medical and digital care that is closest to their home. As a result, patient visits are faster, with no stigmatization of illness and no anxiety-provoking atmosphere. Only patients demonstrating certain side effects will be contacted to potentially return to the initial hospital. Cerba shapes its medical care to enhance the lives of patients.
What does the patient pathway in IO in Gustave Roussy look like with Patient Connect?
There are several different steps involved in the patient pathway at Gustave Roussy. These include:
- Recruitment of patients (Gustave Roussy recruits patients for immuno-oncology clinical trials)
- Step Two: Routine lab tests - IO clinical trials necessitate frequent lab tests to monitor biological changes. Patients can attend a suitable Cerba lab anywhere in France instead of going to the main hospital site.
- Step Three: Proficiently trained lab technicians for data acquisition - During biology, the lab technicians amass the patients’ answers and impressions. They follow the Gustave Roussy protocol to which they have been trained and complete specific questionnaires uploaded to the platform.
- Step Four: Data is transmitted to a data center, and then to the hospital. Survey results, trial and biological data is centralized in a data center and then transmitted to Gustave Roussy physicians.
- Step Five: Only patients showing side effects need to return to the hospital. Patients reporting severe side effects are required to return to Gustave Roussy. The others will continue routine lab appointments in their local laboratory. Everything is digitally monitored, which reduces paperwork for physicians and sites.
The benefits of using the Patient Connect Solution
Staff at Cerba have an excellent understanding of what is needed for the Patient Connect Solution. From experience, the better the experience for the patient, the better the end result.
Cerba also possesses information in the real-time lab tests, as well as in the clinical data. So, as physicians in medical oncology, it is vital that the right information is accessed at the right time, and the Patient Connect Solution offers this.
Due to the ongoing nature of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is crucial not to have vast numbers of patients gathering in the waiting room to await results. Thus, the Patient Connect Solution really helps save time and reduces the risk of COVID-19 infections being passed from patient to patient.
Moreover, the addition of supplementary information, such as clinical information or the patient’s daily routine, is important and is extremely beneficial for both the trials and the patients.
Of course, it is essential to get lab data in real-time, but it is also important to have clinical information. So, with Patient Connect Solution, the appropriate information can be acquired at the right time, at the right moment, with the right patient and with the right physician.
Patient Experience in Immuno-Oncology Trials - In Partnership With Gustave Roussy
Video Credit: Cerba Research
About Cerba Research
For over 35 years, Cerba Research has been setting the industry standard for exemplary clinical trial conduct. Today, across five continents, with a focus on precision medicine, we are changing the paradigm of the central lab’s role in complex clinical research.
From protocol inception through development and to market, our passionate experts deliver the highest quality specialized and personalized laboratory and diagnostic solutions. Partner with us for the most efficient strategy to actualize your biotech and pharmaceutical products sooner and improve the lives of patients worldwide.
Sponsored Content Policy: News-Medical.net publishes articles and related content that may be derived from sources where we have existing commercial relationships, provided such content adds value to the core editorial ethos of News-Medical.Net which is to educate and inform site visitors interested in medical research, science, medical devices and treatments.