{"id":3944,"date":"2016-07-20T14:23:11","date_gmt":"2016-07-20T18:23:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/52.229.122.34\/en\/?p=3944"},"modified":"2021-02-17T11:10:03","modified_gmt":"2021-02-17T16:10:03","slug":"clinical-trials-closer-to-home-for-patients-with-neuromuscular-diseases","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/uncategorized\/clinical-trials-closer-to-home-for-patients-with-neuromuscular-diseases\/","title":{"rendered":"Clinical trials closer to home for patients with neuromuscular diseases"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dr. Jodi Warman Chardon (right) and Dr. Robin Parks are pleased that patients will have access to clinical trials in Ottawa once The Ottawa Hospital\u2019s Neuromuscular Clinical Research Centre opens next year.<\/em><\/p>\n

Neurologist Dr. Jodi Warman Chardon used to take the train regularly to Montreal, and she often saw patients with neuromuscular diseases travelling to take part in clinical trials there that weren\u2019t available in Ottawa. Other patients travel to Toronto, London and even Miami.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt just humbled me,\u201d said Dr. Warman Chardon. \u201cSo many people are desperate to participate in clinical trials in Ottawa. I realized we needed to offer more therapies and research for our patients.\u201d<\/p>\n

Many others \u2013 including patients, scientists and neurologists \u2013 were wrestling with the same challenge. Now, there\u2019s a solution.<\/p>\n

The Ottawa Hospital\u2019s Neuromuscular Clinical Research Centre (NCRC) will open next year at the Civic Campus, bringing hope for better treatments and cures to thousands of Ottawa-area patients who have neuromuscular diseases such as ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, aka Lou Gehrig\u2019s disease), myotonic dystrophy, muscular dystrophy and Guillain-Barr\u00e9 Syndrome.<\/p>\n

\u201cOttawa is poised to be a national leader in clinical care, and the NCRC will increase basic science, translational and clinical research to improve the lives of patients with neuromuscular diseases,\u201d said Dr. Robin Parks, a senior research scientist at the hospital.<\/p>\n

Many patients aren\u2019t able to travel, so having clinical trials and improved treatment options in Ottawa is a breakthrough for them.<\/p>\n

Karen Lawrence, Clinical Manager on 6 West at the General Campus, is one of those patients. Genetic testing revealed she has a familial gene for ALS \u2013 which has taken 14 family members. Her father and uncle took part in clinical trials in Montreal, and she is part of a research study in Miami. Once the NCRC opens, she can have the required tests done here instead.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe ALS clinic at the hospital\u2019s Rehabilitation Centre provides good rehabilitation and supportive care,\u201d said Lawrence. \u201cHowever, with the NCRC, patients can participate in much-needed research and clinical trials.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"karenlawrence\"<\/p>\n

Once the new Clinical Research Centre opens, Karen Lawrence won\u2019t have to travel to Miami to participate in research trials.<\/em><\/p>\n

The NCRC will bring together many existing hospital neuromuscular disease experts, including neurologists, researchers, technologists and nurses, and will offer new therapies, clinical trials and world-class training for the next generation of physicians and basic scientists.<\/p>\n

\u201cOffering an accurate diagnosis remains the crucial first step, but this is the starting point in the journey of care,\u201d said Dr. Pierre Bourque, Director of the new NCRC. \u201cThis is an incredibly exciting time, as many neuromuscular diseases are now treatable, for example with immune-based interventions. Research is opening new avenues.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is exactly the care we\u2019d want for our loved ones,\u201d said Dr. Warman Chardon. \u201cClinicians working together with scientists \u2013 we\u2019ll be unstoppable. The new centre will be a game changer. And that\u2019s what we need for our patients.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dr. Jodi Warman Chardon (right) and Dr. Robin Parks are pleased that patients will have access to clinical trials in Ottawa once The Ottawa Hospital\u2019s Neuromuscular Clinical Research Centre opens next year. Neurologist Dr. Jodi Warman Chardon used to take the train regularly to Montreal, and she often saw patients with neuromuscular diseases travelling to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":3945,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3944","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"wps_subtitle":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3944","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3944"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3944\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3945"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3944"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3944"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3944"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}