More than 200 Andalusian patients participate in the largest European research study on autoimmune diseases
The 3TR partners have recently met in Barcelona to take stock of its development, currently having 45 recruitment centers in Europe and the participation of more than 2,400 patients.
A total of 210 patients from different public hospitals in Andalusia participate in the largest project of currently existing research on immune-mediated diseases, the so-called 3TR (Taxonomy, Treatment, Targets and Remission), coordinated by Marta Alarcón Riquelme, researcher at the Progreso y Salud Foundation and scientific director of the GENYO research center in Granada.
This project, which recently held in the Auditorium of the University of Barcelona its annual meeting, brought together more than a hundred researchers, clinicians, patients and representatives of the pharmaceutical industry in Barcelona to present the main scientific advances of the project, which aims to improve knowledge about six autoimmune diseases and facilitate the development of personalized treatments.
One of the highlights was the progress in patient recruitment, which already exceeds initial expectations in several European countries and which is essential for results that advance in the knowledge and approach of these pathologies. The project currently has 45 recruitment centres in Europe and has enrolled more than 2,400 patients. In particular, Andalusia has played a fundamental role in this phase, thanks to the coordinated work of the Andalusian public health clinical and research teams, through the Andalusian Public Foundation for Progress and Health.
The recruitment of the 210 Andalusian patients included in the studies positions the region as one of the most active in Europe within the framework of 3TR, contributing decisively to the generation of knowledge and improvement in the clinical management of pathologies such as systemic lupus erythematosus, multiple sclerosis or rheumatoid arthritis.
An important role in this task is played by the Biobank of the Public Health System of Andalusia, which coordinates the collection, storage and shipment of biological samples from patients recruited throughout Europe, guaranteeing their traceability and quality for scientific analysis of the project. Thus, patients can be included in observational studies or project intervention studies, which collect clinical data, biological samples before, during and after treatment, and monitor their progress.
In addition to providing samples, patients provide information about their quality of life, their treatment experience and patient-reported outcomes (PROs), which is key for the research to be meaningful from their perspective.
In this regard, the Barcelona meeting also highlighted the patient advisors of the project, who shared their expectations and priorities with the leaders of the work packages, providing a key vision for the orientation future of the project.
3TR Project
The 3TR project, funded by the European Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI-JU2) and coordinated from Granada, addresses the health challenge of why many patients with autoimmune, inflammatory or allergic diseases do not respond to current treatments. To this end, the consortium brings together 69 entities from 15 countries and analyzes data and samples (tissue, blood, stool, other fluids) from tens of thousands of patients with seven key diseases including lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, inflammatory bowel disease, asthma, and COPD.
The objective is to identify molecular, microbiome and genomic patterns that allow predicting the response or not of each patient to treatment, establish biomarkers to guide personalized therapies. Throughout its more than seven years of duration, the project is consolidating a centralized data platform, harmonizing existing studies and conducting new observational trials, in order to facilitate an increasingly precise, effective and adjusted medicine to the individual profile of the patient.
Source: Virgen Macarena University Hospital of Seville