Researchers at Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS FT, have launched a cutting-edge trial which could save the lives of patients who have suffered from heart attacks. The study will be run by the Bradford Institute for Health Research (BIHR), with the support and hep of the newly-established National Institute for Health Research Patient Recruitment Centre (PRC).
This is the latest research trial for PRC Bradford, one of five national PRCs set up across England, and made possible due to a £7 million government investment. The late-phase ‘DAPA-MI’ clinical research trial will evaluate AstraZeneca’s drug, Farxiga (dapagliflozin) as a treatment to reduce mortality and the risk of heart failure following a heart attack.
The trial is a multi-national study, conducted in collaboration with the Uppsala Clinical Research Center (UCR) in Sweden, with Bradford being one of 50 centres across the UK taking part.
Consultant Cardiologist, Dr Steven Lindsay who is leading the study in Bradford, said: “The drug has already been used successfully to treat diabetic, and non-diabetic patients with heart failure. But this new study looks into its effectiveness in the treatment of patients who suffer a heart attack.
“This is an important study and we are pleased to be taking part. As a trust and as a newly-established PRC, it’s important that we are actively involved in cutting-edge clinical research and that we can offer our patients the chance to have access to research.
“This is a placebo-controlled, randomised clinical trial so that neither participants nor investigators will know whether they receive the drug or the placebo.”
The UK national principal investigator for the trial is Professor Robert Storey from the University of Sheffield. Dr Lindsay will be aided in the trial by Consultant Cardiologist, Dr Jivendra Gosai.
As part of the trial national registries of patients in both Sweden and the UK will also be used to collect data on participants.
Dr Gosai explained: “Most people who have had a heart attack will be included in these registries. So having this data will improve the efficiency of data collection. This is a new way of collecting data for participants in a clinical trial.
“We see around 700 to 800 patients with heart attacks here at the trust every year. Participants will have to meet a certain criterion; for example, they cannot have diabetes or already have had a diagnosis of heart failure.”
Director of PRC Bradford, Professor Dinesh Saralaya said: “I am delighted that our Cardiology Research Team headed by Dr Lindsay, is able to bring this very important study to the city of Bradford to help our patients. It is a testament to the team’s excellent research ability and I’m proud that the PRC is able to help facilitate this vital research.”
PRC Bradford’s other trials to date are the Gilead study investigating the efficiency of the drug Remdesivir in patients with Covid-19, and the late-phase Novavax Covid-19 vaccine trial, which was hugely successful and recruited more than 720 participants. This made Bradford the third highest recruiting centre in the UK. The trial is expected to run for between 18 months to two years.
