Boston University - Clinical & Translational Science Institute

Transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTR) is a disease where the normally occurring transthyretin (TTR) protein falls apart and forms amyloid, a sticky plaque- like substance that accumulates in different organs in the body and can cause damage to the organ. There are two ways that the TTR protein can fall apart. One way occurs as a person ages, where the normal TTR protein can fall apart and form amyloid that may no longer be sufficiently cleared by the body. This type of ATTR is known as wild-type ATTR (ATTRwt). The other way occurs when a person inherits a defective TTR gene that causes the TTR protein to spontaneously fall apart. This form of the disease is known as variant ATTR (ATTRv) and can be detected in adults by a genetic test of their TTR gene before they age. Amyloid build-up in the heart causes the heart wall to become thick and stiff and can result in heart failure and even death. Accumulation of TTR amyloid in the heart is known as transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy or ATTR-CM. Amyloid can also deposit in the nerve tissues leading to nerve problems. Accumulation of TTR in the nerves is known as transthyretin amyloid polyneuropathy or ATTR-PN. Acoramidis is an experimental drug designed to bind tightly to TTR in the blood and stabilize its structure, so it does not form the harmful amyloid plaques that can cause damage to organs. This study is intended to determine if treatment with acoramidis in participants with ATTRv who have not yet developed any symptoms of disease can prevent or delay the development of ATTR-CM or ATTR-PN disease. If adults with an inherited defective TTR gene are treated early before any of the symptoms of disease have developed, it may be possible to delay the onset or prevent the disease entirely.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: May 2025

open study

STEP is a Randomized, Multifactorial, Adaptive Platform trial that seeks to optimize the care of patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) due to large (LVO) or medium vessel occlusions (MVO).

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Jan 2025

open study

The phase III trial compares the effect of pembrolizumab to observation for the treatment of patients with early-stage triple-negative breast cancer who achieved a pathologic complete response after preoperative chemotherapy in combination with pembrolizumab. Immunotherapy with monoclonal antibodies, such as pembrolizumab, may help the body's immune system attack the cancer, and may interfere with the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. This trial may help researchers determine if observation will result in the same risk of cancer coming back as pembrolizumab after surgery in triple-negative breast cancer patients who achieve pathologic complete response after preoperative chemotherapy with pembrolizumab.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Jun 2023

open study

This study is designed as a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, parallel group, placebo-controlled study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of iptacopan (LNP023) in idiopathic immune complex mediated membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Oct 2023

open study

This Phase II/III trial will evaluate the what kind of chemotherapy to recommend to patients based on the presence or absences of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) after surgery for colon cancer.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Mar 2022

open study

This phase III trial compares perioperative chemotherapy (given before and after surgery) versus adjuvant chemotherapy (given after surgery) for the treatment of pancreatic cancer that can be removed by surgery (removable/resectable). Chemotherapy drugs, such as fluorouracil, irinotecan, leucovorin, and oxaliplatin, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells, by stopping them from dividing, or by stopping them from spreading. Giving chemotherapy before and after surgery (perioperatively) may work better in treating patients with pancreatic cancer compared to giving chemotherapy after surgery (adjuvantly).

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Oct 2020

open study

Scleroderma (SSc) is an autoimmune disease characterized by fibrosis (or collagen deposition) of the skin and internal organs. The extent of skin fibrosis is an important predictor of internal organ complications and increased mortality. Currently a very imprecise, subjective method that varies amongst different doctors for the same patient is used to quantify skin fibrosis in patients, by "pinching" their skin and assessing how thick it is; this is the method used to determine the modified Rodnan skin score (mRSS). A previous plot study was conducted by the investigators to determine if spatial frequency domain imaging (SFDI), a method of light scattering, could be used to measure the collagen content in the skin of SSc patients. This non-painful, noninvasive method takes very little time and the investigators hypothesized that it would be more accurate than the "pinching" method. For that pilot study, patients with various stages of the disease were selected, and SFDI was used to image 6 areas. A forearm skin biopsy was taken for subsequent histopathology analyses of collagen content. The clinical mRSS was assessed at the time of SFDI measurement. Optical property imaging data was analyzed and statistically correlated and analyzed with immunohistochemistry (a method of identifying proteins) of the skin. Preliminary results demonstrated a strong correlation between mRSS and SFDI. Some of the imaging parameters of the SFDI were modified based on the initial results. Initial results demonstrated that the device can detect increases in skin thickness observed in SSc skin.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Nov 2025

open study

The main purpose of this study is to compare the effect of tebapivat versus placebo on anemia and to detect a dose-response for hemoglobin (Hb) response in participants with SCD.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: May 2025

open study

This study aims to check how safe and well-tolerated a second dose of RSVpreF is when given during later pregnancies, and to see how long the immunity lasts from a single dose given during a previous pregnancy by examining the blood of nonpregnant participants who had the vaccine before.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Apr 2025

open study

This Phase III, multicenter, double-blind, placebo-controlled treat-through study will evaluate the efficacy and safety of induction and maintenance therapy with Afimkibart (also known as RO7790121) in participants with moderately to severely active Crohn's disease (CD).

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Mar 2025

open study

The main goal of this trial is to study the frequency and severity of cytokine release syndrome (CRS) in participants with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) who are using a combination of glofitamab + gemcitabine + oxaliplatin (Glofit-GemOx) followed by glofitamab-only treatment.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Mar 2025

open study

The goal of this randomized trial is to investigate if using virtual reality (VR) glasses for patients who require non-emergent oral surgery procedures under intravenous (IV) sedation improves their overall experience compared to using standard of care safety glasses. This study has two primary objectives. 1. To evaluate if VR glasses can improve patient tolerance during IV access, sedation induction, and the surgical procedure. 2. To investigate whether the use of VR glasses reduces the amount of sedation required for induction and throughout the oral surgery procedure. 80 subjects will be randomly assigned 1:1 to either wear VR glasses playing a relaxing video and audio or VR glasses that will only serve as eye protection (control group).

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Nov 2025

open study

The primary purpose of the study is to assess how well amivantamab in combination with lazertinib or in combination with chemotherapy works (antitumor activity) in participants with epidermal growth factor receptor mutated (EGFRm) non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC; that is one of the major types of lung cancer).

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Dec 2024

open study

This study is to investigate the ability of LXE408 to reduce or remove the level of parasites in the blood of people with chronic Chagas disease. Participants must have chronic Chagas disease without severe organ dysfunction.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Apr 2025

open study

This study is conducted to confirm whether etavopivat works well at reducing the number of Vaso-occlusive crisis VOCs (sickle cell pain crises) caused by obstructions in blood vessels in adults and adolescents living with sickle cell disease. The study will also evaluate how well etavopivat can reduce the damage to different organs, improve your exercise tolerance and reduce fatigue in people with sickle cell disease.The participants will either get etavopivat or placebo. Which treatment the participants will get is decided by chance. Etavopivat is a new medicine and is currently being tested in other studies in addition to this one. The study will last for about 2 years.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Feb 2025

open study

This Phase III, multicenter, double-blind, placebo-controlled, treat-through study will evaluate the efficacy and safety of Afimkibart (RO7790121) compared with placebo in participants with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis (UC).

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Sep 2024

open study

The main purpose of Part 1 of this study is to assess the efficacy and safety of 3 dose levels of Pirtobrutinib in participants with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) or small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL), who have received 1-3 lines of treatment including a covalent Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor. The purpose of Part 2 of this study is to evaluate pirtobrutinib monotherapy in participants with treatment-naïve CLL/SLL with 17p deletions. Participation in Part 1 is expected to last approximately 3 years. Participation in Part 2 is expected to last up to 2 years.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Jan 2025

open study

Participants eligible for the study will be randomly allocated (1:1:1) to receive either Luminopia dichoptic treatment while wearing optical correction if needed, Vivid Vision dichoptic treatment while wearing optical correction if needed, or continued optical correction alone if needed, with clinical assessments at 9- and 18-weeks post-randomization. At the 18-week primary outcome visit, participants who were randomly assigned to receive optical correction alone if needed with an IOD of 1 logMAR line (5 letters) or more, will be offered randomization to Luminopia or Vivid Vision dichoptic therapy and if they accept, followed forward with visits at 27- and 36-weeks post-randomization. The study will end for all other participants at 18 weeks.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Oct 2024

open study

The primary goal of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of elacestrant versus standard endocrine therapy in participants with node-positive, Estrogen Receptor-positive (ER+), Human Epidermal Growth Factor-2 negative (HER2-) early breast cancer with high risk of recurrence.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Sep 2024

open study

The goal of this study (iMMagine-3) is to compare the study drug, anitocabtagene autoleucel to standard of care therapy (SOCT) in participants with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma who have received 1 to 3 prior lines of therapy, including an anti-CD38 monoclonal antibody and an immunomodulatory drug. The primary objective of this study is to compare the efficacy of anitocabtagene autoleucel versus SOCT in participants with RRMM.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Aug 2024

open study

Psychological distress is common among Vietnamese cancer patients but often underestimated and not detected by professionals due to lack of time and overload of clinical work. Currently no established, evidence-based intervention exists to help address the mental health needs of cancer patients in Viet Nam besides the 'Stronger Together' peer mentoring intervention model that the investigators piloted in 2021-2023. The goal of this 2-arm, parallel, single-blind randomized controlled trial (RCT) is to pilot and evaluate the Vietnamese Self Help Plus (vSH+) stress management intervention among breast and gynecologic cancer patients in Viet Nam. Aim 1- the investigators pilot the adapted vSH+ intervention. After recruitment and screening, participants are randomized into either the intervention (vSH+) or enhanced usual care (EUC) study arms. Participants are invited to attend an in-person informational session (IS) specific to their study arm, where informed consent is obtained. Aim 2- the investigators assess the potential effectiveness of the vSH+ intervention. Quantitative surveys of study outcomes measures are administered at three timepoints: T0 (baseline, in-person, during info-sessions); T1 (1-2 weeks post-intervention, via phone); and T2 (3 months post-intervention, via phone). Aim 3- the investigators conduct a qualitative process evaluation, via in-depth interview (IDIs) and focus group discussions (FGDs), to assess the acceptability and feasibility implementing and scaling up the vSH+ intervention model. Satisfaction surveys will be administered during vSH+ sessions and in-depth interviews (IDIs) will be conducted following the conclusion of the intervention. IDIs wil also be conducted with Facilitators, in addition to evaluation surveys during vSH+ sessions and supportive supervision sessions. Between T1 and T2, the investigators will conduct IDIs with Healthcare Workers and focus group discussions with Caregivers.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Nov 2024

open study

In children 4 to 7 years of age, to determine if treatment with 1 hour per day 6 days per week of watching dichoptic movies/shows wearing the Luminopia headset is non-inferior to treatment with 2 hours of patching per day 7 days per week with respect to change in amblyopic eye distance VA from randomization to 26 weeks.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Jul 2024

open study

This study will be conducted as a prospective cohort study, enrolling all eligible women in their first trimester of pregnancy during a baseline visit during week 6-13 of pregnancy at Government Medical College Hospital, Nagpur. The Hospital provides primary, secondary, and tertiary care and the obstetric department delivers about 10,000 babies a year. The hypothesis is that co-infection of other respiratory viruses (ORV), particularly COVID-19 and Influenza increases the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes in mothers and babies and could address the current standard of care in India to not vaccinate pregnant women during pregnancy, by either encouraging vaccination against both viruses before planning a pregnancy or during pregnancy based on global data supporting the safety of this strategy.

Type: Observational

Start Date: Dec 2023

open study

The liver produces a protein called alpha-1 antitrypsin (AAT). AAT is normally released into the bloodstream. In some people, the liver makes an abnormal version of the AAT protein, called Z-AAT. Making an abnormal version of the AAT protein can result in liver disease as Z-AAT builds up in liver cells, which leads to liver problems such as liver scarring (fibrosis), continuing liver damage (cirrhosis), and eventually end stage liver disease. Fazirsiran is a medicine that reduces the creation of the Z-AAT protein and thus the build-up of this abnormal protein in the liver. People with this type of liver disease who already have mild liver scarring will take part in the study. They will be treated with fazirsiran or a placebo for about 2 years. This study will check the long-term safety of fazirsiran, whether participants tolerate the treatment and if there are any effects on liver scarring. A liver biopsy, a way of collecting a small tissue sample from the liver, will be taken twice during the study.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Mar 2024

open study

The purpose of this study is to assess if adding LY3537982 (olomorasib) in combination with standard of care anti-cancer drugs is more effective than standard of care in participants with untreated advanced NSCLC. NSCLC must have a change in a gene called KRAS G12C. Study participation, including follow-up, could last up to 3 years, depending on how you and your lung cancer are doing.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Dec 2023

open study