TARGET PharmaSolutions Inc. recently announced enrollment of the first patients in its ten year, ten thousand patient asthma study. Professor Michael Wechsler, M.D. pulmonologist at the National Jewish Health organization gave details to HCPLive®. He explained that the study will use real-world data, including patients’ medical records, to analyze and understand all aspects of asthma. Eventually the researchers hope to collect and study biorepository samples.
Dr. Wechsler went on to say that clinical decisions often depend on clinical trial data which may not provide sufficient information. He mentioned that patients with more than one disease (comorbidities) are generally excluded from clinical studies and that affects trial results. As an example, Dr. Wechsler said that people who smoke may also have asthma and require treatment.
Another factor that the TARGET-ASTHMA studies will take into consideration is that many trials are weighted heavily towards a particular race or ethnicity. Dr. Wechsler said their study will remedy this situation by identifying patient populations that are underserved.
About Asthma
Chronic asthma is a long-term condition that inflames airways in the lungs. It is this on-going inflammation that is responsible for its severity.
Symptoms include wheezing, shortness of breath, coughing and chest tightness.
Estimates of severe asthma disease in the United States is around eight percent. The cost to the healthcare system is over twelve billion dollars a year. Asthma may also develop into lung or pulmonary disease.
The Seventh Study
TARGET-ASTHMA is the seventh observational study conducted by TARGET PharmaSolutions. Prior studies included diseases such as:
- Hepatocellular carcinoma
- Inflammatory bowel disease
- NASH
- Primary biliary cholangitis
- Chronic hepatitis B
- Immune-mediated inflammatory skin conditions
A map of the history of asthma will be created and various treatments will be analyzed. The investigators will use the study to evaluate patient populations and identify similar characteristics among groups.
Several groups of scientific leaders provide direction for the study. The groups include regulatory agencies, patient advocacy groups, and pharmaceutical manufacturers.
About TARGET PharmaSolutions
TARGET PharmaSolutions is a privately-held data solutions company based in Durham, North Carolina. TARGET provides its biotechnology and pharmaceutical partners efficient methods of generating data in real-world settings.
The company conducts the studies to collect data on diseases throughout the world as they emerge onto the market.
