Events

Concept development workshop for investigators
28th May, 2010

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CTC Outreach

CTC Outreach is a research support program designed to promote high-quality clinical trials in currently unsupported clinical areas. It also provides support for clinicians and researchers looking to develop their skills in clinical trials methods.

The program is funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia (NHMRC) and was initiated by the NHMRC Clinical Trials Centre (University of Sydney).

What do we do

CTC Outreach provides expertise and support to new investigators and groups, including:

  • Study design and conduct, including statistical considerations, and database and forms design.
  • Concept development, including outlines, trial proposals, protocols and funding applications.
  • Randomisation and drug distribution systems.
  • Development of clinical research skills and support for new investigators and groups.
  • Establishment of clinical trials support networks in disease or therapeutic areas currently not catered for.

How we can help

Areas already identified as priorities for support through this program include surgery, new health technologies, palliative care, supportive care and translating existing evidence into practice. A higher priority will be given to trials addressing optimal use of existing treatments or ways of improving the delivery of health care than to trials of new drugs. Example include:

  • Surgical trials of different operations, techniques, or combinations with other modalities.
  • Trials evaluating new health technologies for which there is currently very poor evidence.
  • Trials of management strategies (such as multidisciplinary care, hospital in the home, implementation of evidence-based guidelines).
  • Trials of alternative and complementary medicines with a poor evidence base.
  • Trials of supportive and palliative interventions, ambulance services, and nursing care.

Researchers in other clinical and therapeutic areas are also encouraged to approach Outreach with their proposals. Proposals and investigator-led initiatives in a under-supported areas are particularly encouraged.

To contact us you can either:

CTC Outreach has an Access Policy, which formally outlines the requirements for obtaining support.

pdf icon Download the Access Policy pdf.

Contact us

Researchers and clinicians are encouraged to approach Outreach with their trial proposals. You can either:

CTC Outreach has an Access Policy, which formally outlines the requirements for obtaining support.

pdf icon Download the Access Policy pdf.

About the CTC

The National Health and Medical Research Council Clinical Trials Centre (NHMRC CTC) conducts its own clinical trials as well as providing expertise and infrastructure for trials run by other groups. It also undertakes research aiming to improve the conduct of trials and the quality of the resulting clinical evidence.

Since 1988, when the CTC was set up as a research centre at the University of Sydney, over 60,000 patients have been randomised into its trials. Currently, around 40 active trials — in cancer, cardiovascular disease and neonatology — are being conducted in collaboration with networks of clinical investigators across Australia and elsewhere.

The CTC has played a leading role in establishing some of these investigator groups, most recently the Cooperative Trials Group for Neuro-Oncology and the Australasian Lung Cancer Trials Group.

Trial investigators also participate in international collaborations to carry out prospective meta-analysis of data from current clinical trials. For example, the NeOProM collaboration has been formed by five cooperating trial groups, involving over 5000 patients, with leadership from the CTC. Developments such as this increase the efficiency of research and the validity of its findings, resulting in benefit to patients throughout the world.

The CTC also has strong links and partnerships with government and nongovernment organisations and industry. Projects include capacity building for Australian health and research, reviews of evidence to assist government policy making, and methodological research. The CTC’s past research has served the Australian population well, particularly through reduced cardiovascular disease and deaths from heart disease and improved survival and better quality of life for patients with many types of cancer.