International Clinical Trials Day, held annually on 20 May, holds a special significance this year as we witness the success and continued growth of the VCCC clinical trials program. There is no doubt it’s an exciting time for clinical trials in Australia. We are seeing unprecedented state and Australian government investment in the area and a new emphasis on collaboration – which is particularly important for an alliance such as the VCCC. Despite concerns about Australia’s competitive position in clinical trials in a global environment, I believe the prospects for delivering transformative outcomes from clinical trials in cancer are strong, with an opportunity for leadership from Victoria.
As we enter the final weeks of the federal election campaign, we recognise that both Federal and State governments have made strong commitments to transforming clinical trials, and we enjoyed discussing the positive impacts of these developments for regional patients with the Victorian Health Minister The Hon. Jenny Mikakos when she visited the VCCC last month (pictured above with me and Anna Boltong, Associate Director, VCCC).
Among the highlights of our current programs; the Teletrials Program is increasing access to cancer clinical trials closer to home for regional Victorians, and more than 6,000 patients with cancer in Victoria, nationally and internationally, will benefit from new clinical trial projects supported by the VCCC Investigator-Initiated Trial Capacity Building Program.
The VCCC is growing its capacity as a powerhouse for innovation in clinical trials as we work with and alongside other collaborative groups such as the Australian Clinical Trials Alliance (ACTA), The Melbourne Academic Centre for Health (MACH), the Victorian Regional Trials Network and other national cooperative clinical trials groups and state based groups.
Within the VCCC members we are seeing significant progress in many areas and we should celebrate this.
Professor Andrew Scott, from La Trobe’s School of Cancer Medicine and the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute, and Austin Health has received $1,520,000 over five years from the MRFF to run a clinical trial involving patients with high-grade glioma or glioblastoma (GBM). His multi-centre study will bring together 19 investigators from major hospitals and universities around Australia and will investigate the role of FET-PET imaging technology in the treatment of GBM patients.
An Australia and New Zealand Melanoma Trials Group (ANZMTG) clinical trial led by Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre investigators that aims to develop a novel treatment combination for a rare cancer has also received $1.8M funding from the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF). The trial, headed by Dr Shahneen Sandhu, will involve patients with Merkel Cell Carcinoma (MCC) and will test the immunotherapy drug, Avelumab, in combination with either radionuclide therapy or external beam radiotherapy.
This new age for cancer clinical trials requires that we rethink previous ways of working. To fully capitalise on the forward momentum and be among the leadership group we need to tick all the MRFF boxes for the successful allocation of funds:
High on the list of priorities is ‘capacity and collaboration’, with clinical researcher capacity and consumer-driven research identified as key areas. The MRFF budget contains $633M for Emerging Priorities and Consumer Driven Research, $614M for Clinical Trials for Rare Cancers, Rare Diseases and Unmet Needs and $191M for Clinical Researchers. ‘Commercialisation’ and the enhancement of translational research infrastructure also offer opportunities for us.
As we celebrate International Clinical Trials Day this year, we will be assessing our progress and will continue to identify and address the gaps that remain. Good work is progressing in some key areas:
Access to clinical trials closer to home
The VCCC Teletrials Program structured framework is now allowing regional and rural patients improved access to clinical trials closer to where they live.
Lifting clinical trial capacity
The VCCC Registry Trial Program tests a novel design that employs data collected during routine care to produce baseline measures and outcome evidence; and enables large numbers of patients to participate in clinical trials.
Broadening and diversifying clinical trial groups
Palliative care is not usually associated with clinical trials but is one of the new areas to be supported by the VCCC Investigator-initiated Trial Capacity Building Program, providing clinical trials to patients who have not previously benefitted from this type of research.
I invite you and your teams to join us for a special Monday Lunch Live showcase to celebrate International Clinical Trials Day on Monday 20 May where we will share our vision for early career researchers and the VCCC Investigator-initiated Trial Capacity Building Program.
Congratulations to the VCCC program managers and distributed leadership team for their significant progress this year.
Anne Woollett Head of Clinical Trials Program and Mark Rosenthal Clinical Trials Development Lead
Evelien Rosens Program Manager
Registry Trials I Peter Gibbs, Walter and Eliza Hall Institute
Building Trial Group Capability I Jennifer Philip, St Vincent’s Hospital
Increasing Awareness of Clinical Trials I Dishan Herath, Western Health
Kate Khamly Program Manager
New Approaches to Clinical Trials I Sean Grimmond, University of Melbourne
Investigator-initiated Trials Capacity Building I Mark Rosenthal, PeterMac
Courtney Thornely Program Manager
Building Capacity Through Efficiency I Heike Raunow, Western Health
Metrics for Clinical Trials Participation I Mark Rosenthal, PeterMac
Alana Donaldson Program Manager
Teletrials I Craig Underhill, Border Oncology Centre
Justine Ellis Program Manager
Increasing Adolescent and Young Adult Clinical Trials Access I Alexandra Robertson, The Royal Children’s Hospital
Chris Packer and Deb McAteer Program Managers
Development of Clinical Trials Workforce I Marian Lieschke, PeterMac
Capacity and Capability I Marian Lieschke, PeterMac
Professor Grant McArthur
Executive Director
