UMass Chan Medical School in Worcester could receive up to $18 million from the U.S. Department of Defense to lead a nationwide clinical study to determine if metformin, a drug used to treat high blood sugar and type 2 diabetes, can be used to treat a form of chronic, progressive lung disease.
UMass Chan Medical School in Worcester could receive up to $18 million from the U.S. Department of Defense to lead a nationwide clinical study to determine if metformin, a drug used to treat high blood sugar and type 2 diabetes, can be used to treat a form of chronic, progressive lung disease.
The DOD has granted UMass Chan a $625,000 grant to study the impact of metformin on idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. After the initial phase, UMass Chan researchers can then apply for an additional $17.3 million.
IPF is a disease of unknown origins that causes thickening and stiffening of the lungs, making it progressively harder to breathe, according to the National Institutes of Health’s website.
UMass Chan’s Dr. Fernando Martinez, professor of medicine and academic chief of the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care, will serve as principal investigator, according to a Thursday press release from the university.
“It’s safe to say that pulmonary fibrosis is of interest to the DOD because epidemiological data have demonstrated that veterans are at increased risk for disease. Moreover, the DOD has been forward thinking in introducing new ways to efficiently study future therapies across a broad range of patient groups by investing in novel pragmatic clinical trial infrastructure that will integrate VA Medical Centers with the PFF care network,” Martinez said in the press release.
Additionally, the study will test the capacity of a new blood test to detect IPF patients who are more susceptible to adverse outcomes.
The clinical study will see 400 IPF patients with increased risk receive either metformin or a placebo.
UMass Chan will partner with approximately 55 Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation care centers and Veterans Affairs medical centers to screen 800 IPF patients for the study.
Some
studies suggest that exposure to
Agent Orange, an herbicide used in the Vietnam War, is associated with a higher risk of IPF.
“This marks a novel collaboration between the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation, the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs, creating a model for future pulmonary fibrosis clinical trials and expanding access for veterans historically underrepresented in this research,” Dr. Bhavika Kaul, physician-investigator for the Department of Veterans Affairs’ Center for Innovations in Quality, Effectiveness and Safety, said in the release.
Upon the completion of the study’s initial planning phase and fulfillment of certain milestones, the study’s investigators will apply for an additional $17.3 million in funding for the project through the Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program, a DOD initiative funding research promoting the health, care, and well-being of military service members, veterans, and retirees, according to the program’s website.
Mica Kanner-Mascolo is a staff writer at Worcester Business Journal, who primarily covers the healthcare and diversity, equity, and inclusion industries.
