Elevation Oncology and US Oncology Research have announced a collaboration to utilize the US Oncology Research Selected Trials for Accelerated Rollout (STAR) program for patient enrollment in the registration-enabling Phase 2 CRESTONE study for patients with solid tumors of any origin that have an NRG1 gene fusion.
"The ability to accurately detect rare genomic driver alterations in a patient's tumor and subsequently open up a clinical study site in response, is paramount to bringing precision therapy opportunities to patients that may benefit from treatment," said Shawn Leland, PharmD, RPh, Founder and Chief Business Officer of Elevation Oncology. "US Oncology Research is ideally positioned to expand the reach of the CRESTONE study for patients with cancers harboring an NRG1 gene fusion for investigational treatment with seribantumab. A key component of this collaboration is the ability to quickly open CRESTONE clinical trial sites via the US Oncology Research STAR program, which minimizes patient travel and disruption in clinical care, a major advantage particularly given the current travel complexities due to COVID-19."
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The STAR program opens and activates clinical trials quickly across all cancer research sites managed by US Oncology Research. STAR is an operational model that allows for pre-screening of potentially eligible subjects upfront and only opens sites where subjects are identified. When a potential STAR trial patient is identified at a facility, the practice is trained in the details of the trial, and the study is opened within a two-week timeframe at the location where the patient will be treated.
"Advancements in diagnostic testing, and an evolution in the understanding of cancer development and progression, have enabled the identification of driver mutations and subsequent treatment for patients with cancer that no longer is associated with the tissue of origin for a particular disease," said Robert L. Coleman, MD, Chief Scientific Officer of US Oncology Research. "Given the broad reach of US Oncology Research, we are able to provide access to investigational treatments at a local medical center and rapidly open up clinical study sites in order to provide options for our patients and physicians in their clinical treatment decisions across the country. With close collaboration between our individual cancer specialists, we are creating a future where cancers that are defined by genomic driver alterations can be rapidly identified and matched to treatments that may be able to stop the growth of an individual patient's disease, wherever they may live."