Lung Health News, Fall 2004 / Winter 2005
The American Lung Association recently funded a new Asthma Clinical Research Center at the University of California, San Diego. The first in California, the center is part of the association’s nationwide network of 20 research centers, the country’s largest not-for-profit network of clinical research centers dedicated to asthma.
Stephen Wasserman, MD, will be the lead investigator for trials conducted at the San Diego center. He is currently a professor of medicine and director of the Section of Allergy and Immunology in the Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology, Department of Medicine.
“We thought it could be a mutually beneficial relationship,” says Dr. Wasserman, who has published more than 200 scientific articles and book chapters on asthma and allergic disorders. “We have a unique patient population and strong research program.”
The Asthma Clinical Research Center network conducts large-scale clinical trials that have a direct impact on patient care and asthma treatment. The San Diego center will participate in and provide patients for at least two of the network’s trials.
One study will compare alternative treatments for patients whose asthma is well controlled on low-dose inhaled steroids and seek to clarify the role of alternative anti-inflammatory medications in the treatment of asthma. The other will determine if patient education and the method of presenting asthma drugs can improve the treatment response to both placebo and active asthma medications.
Network Leverages Important Resources
Clinical trials are expensive and require a large number of participants. The Asthma Clinical Research Center network creates a framework for clinical research using the combined resources of all the centers and has attracted some of the best asthma investigators from around the world.
The American Lung Association has invested more than $10 million in the research network since it was launched in 2000 and has leveraged more than $17 million from outside sources.
Results from the first study have already been released, finding that influenza vaccinations are indeed safe for people with asthma, which has important public health implications because in California alone, flu vaccinations could reduce pediatric hospitalizations for asthma by more than 6,800 a year.
