Clinical Trials Research News Room

CTR Provides a Personal Approach to Clinical Research

websitebuilder@1and1.de — Fri, 07 Feb 2020 21:41:15 GMT

“Less is more” may not be the mantra of many large clinical research centers, but Clinical Trials Research (CTR) in the greater Sacramento area has proven that big results can come from smaller teams.

CTR is a private research site that performs clinical studies in a more personal and approachable manner. They accomplish this by treating fewer patients per day and spending more time educating and talking to volunteers than typically larger public centers would.

For nearly 30 years, CTR’s small team has greeted more than 1,000 volunteers with smiles and provided answers to their many questions and concerns along the way. The center’s small business approach eases the fears of many patients who already have enough to worry about.

“Patients regard us as compassionate and professional,” said Dr. Jeff D. Wayne, CTR’s principal investigator.

CTR’s small research trials have resulted in big breakthroughs. Since 2000, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved over 200 medications after CTR studies.

Fewer Patients Means Quality Care

CTR started as a mom-and-pop type program in 1992, and even though it’s now grown to two locations with a team of over 15 specialists and staff, it maintains its personal approach to clinical research.

On average, a public research facility treats about six times more patients every day than CTR, which reduces the time available for patients to ask questions – something they have plenty of at CTR.

“As a small, private research facility, we can pay much more attention to patients,” said Wayne. “I’m not seeing 30 patients a day. We see maybe five to eight patients a day, so I have the time to really spend with the patients and make sure that they are doing OK.”

When Dorothy started a clinical trial at CTR to help treat her rheumatoid arthritis, she appreciated the comprehensive information she received before she even walked through the door. But she said it was the attention she received at the clinic that made her feel at ease.

“I had a really great experience,” she said. “The people that were part of the study, they were like family. You know, you come in, they greeted me, gave me coffee or a snack before you go, we talked about personal stuff, and it was great.”

Education and Treatment

Volunteers like Dorothy and others not only have the chance to help themselves and others receive life-changing treatments through new medications, but they also have the resources to learn more about their own diseases at CTR.

“They know they are going to get something when they come here, not just a medication,” said Robyn Lawrie, a nurse practitioner at CTR. “They are going to get education. They are going to learn about their disease. They are going to learn to take ownership of their disease.”

CTR studies medications intended to help everything from insomnia, lactose intolerance and asthma to diabetes, Crohn’s disease and high blood pressure.

“I love being on the cutting edge of medicine and developing new treatments for people,” said Wayne. “It changes lives.”

Clinical Trials Research: Inspiring and Saving Lives Every Day

Thu, 07 Nov 2019 08:00:00 GMT

Nicholas’s life appeared to be the American dream: loving wife, two young boys and a successful business of his own. But when diabetes started slowing him down and taking over his health, and ultimately his life, he contemplated giving up.

“Diabetes caught up to me and started putting a hurtin’ on me, to the point where I was unable to do a lot of the necessary tasks of my trade,” he said.

But he didn’t let the disease defeat him that easily.

Nicholas is just one of more than 1,000 patients who turned to Clinical Trials Research (CTR) for life-saving help and found not only treatment and knowledge to control his disease, but also a staff who truly cared about helping him heal – inside and out.

“If it wasn’t for the studies and the help from Dr. Wayne and the staff here, I don’t think I would be here right now,” said Nicholas.

More Than Medication

Nicholas is just one of the more than 30 million Americans who live with diabetes.

“It’s a huge problem,” said Dr. Jeff Wayne, CTR’s Principal Investigator. “One of our roles at Clinical Trials Research is to fight this epidemic of diabetes. It’s just taking over this country.”

When Nicholas came to CTR, he found more than just a research facility running tests and collecting data. He found a small and caring team of professionals who not only supplied him with warm greetings and in-depth conversations but also medication, education and advice on getting his life back on track.

“Nick had diet issues; his weight was a problem. His blood sugars were way out of control,” said Dr. Wayne. “Nick and I had a very serious conversation. I said, ‘Nick, you’ve hit a fork in the road. If you keep going on like this, your quality of life is going to get worse and worse, and you’re going to die younger. We have to make some different decisions right now.’”

And Nicholas listened.

“Dr. Wayne and I had many talks, and he was able to point out my assets and let me take a look at my boys and really change that for me, and that started the journey,” he said. “I started dieting and challenging myself to get up and do something around the house, no matter how painful it was. I kept pushing myself because of my boys and my wife. My boys are my inspiration.”

The Path to Healthy Living

As Nicholas started dealing with his disease through food and exercise, CTR also enrolled him in a diabetes trial to find new medications to help him and others with diabetes find relief from the painful disease.

Now, thanks to his personal dedication to himself and his family, along with the motivation and support from CTR, Nicholas has hope.

“We were able to pay a lot of attention to his condition and really focus in on it and help him through this,” said Dr. Wayne. “He’s a changed man. It’s wonderful. It’s a pleasure for me to see this.”

Dr. Wayne takes his job personally – not just because he knows that clinical research can change and save many lives, but because he too is in the process of healing.

“Probably half of all adult Americans have some kind of cardiovascular disease. I’m one of them,” he said.

When he helps treat others with similar coronary issues, cardiovascular conditions and risks that could lead to further coronary problems, he shares his story with them to inspire them and give them hope for better days.

“Don’t do what I did,” Dr. Wayne said. “Don’t wait – take it seriously. Make some changes now, and have a good quality of life. I can really relate, and I think that does help me connect with them.”

Generous Patients Become a Part of Research History at CTR

Wed, 06 Nov 2019 08:00:00 GMT

Without clinical research trials, many of the lifesaving medications available today simply would not exist.

Clinical Trials Research (CTR) is destigmatizing the process for research volunteers, who may fear becoming “Guinea pigs,” by providing individualized care and education along the way and minimizing risk to patients.

“The number one concern is do no harm,” said Robyn Lawrie, a nurse practitioner at CTR. “We would never do anything to ever hurt you.”

Since 2000, CTR studies have helped approve more than 200 medications with the help of over 1,000 patient volunteers, and the clinic has maintained its reputation for quality care and volunteer attention.

Early Research Minimizes Risk

Before volunteers can enroll in a CTR research study, the medications and treatments – and the volunteers themselves – must go through an in-depth vetting and testing process to ensure everyone’s safety.

“There is a perception by the public that they are Guinea pigs when they participate in a clinical trial,” said Dr. Jeff D. Wayne, CTR’s principal investigator. Lawrie added that at CTR this is definitely not the case: “We already know there is a certain safety profile with this medication, because it’s already been through some phases of study.”

CTR only collaborates with well-known pharmaceutical companies, Contract Research Organizations (CROs) and Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) to initiate and complete innovative research studies.

Each of these organizations abides by specific protocols, and CTR closely monitors volunteers through each step of a clinical trial.

When Charles Davidson began a CTR clinical study for diabetes, he said that while his primary care doctor just prescribed him drugs, the staff at CTR gave him personal guidance and stress-management skills to help treat his illness beyond medication.

“The staff here is great,” he said. “They became like family for me, because I was checking in with them every week. And the conversation was never just ‘How are your numbers? What’s going on?’ It was ‘How are you doing?’”

Lawrie herself has been fighting diabetes for a decade, and she makes a point of sharing her personal experience with patients. “I think my patients appreciate the fact that I share with them my own personal experience,” she said. “They can take that and say, ‘If she can do it, so can I.’”

Benefits Beyond Treatment

When it comes to finding potentially life-saving medications and treatments in clinical research studies, the patient is as important as the investigator.

Some clinical trial benefits are well known, including access to medications at no cost and compensation for time and travel. But perhaps the most life-changing benefits are the less-apparent ones, including invaluable education and information, and eye-opening medical consultations.

“(Volunteers) know they are going to get something when they come here, not just a medication, but they are going to get education,” said Lawrie. “They are going to learn about their disease. They will learn to take ownership of their disease. We’re able to take one particular area the patient is concerned about and really spend a lot of time (with them) – not just seven minutes, but hours if I want to.”

Volunteers also benefit from knowing their clinical trial may ultimately change the lives of many people who suffer from the same pains, if the medications are eventually approved.

“There’s just a caring environment here,” said Davidson. “It’s funny, we’re all given a number in the study to protect our anonymity. They knew me by name, and they would always call me by name, but anytime they needed to see my chart or my records, they forgot my number. So, literally, I was not just a number to them. I was a person that they cared about.”

CTR clinical research aims to help people who suffer from a wide range of ailments, including diabetes, high blood pressure, kidney disease and depression. The clinic’s studies’ effects are far-reaching and have been life-changing for people all over the world – especially at home in Sacramento.

“When patients deal with larger research companies, they really can get lost in the system,” said Wayne. “With our research program, we pay attention and we give people individual care. We really do care about people.”

CTR Makes Women’s Health Research a Priority

websitebuilder@1and1.de — Wed, 06 Feb 2019 08:00:00 GMT

Like many women, Tamara Alton felt trapped by her menopause symptoms and was unable to function during hot flashes. But everything changed when the working mother of four took a chance and enrolled in a research study through Clinical Trials Research (CTR).

“Before, she would come in and she’d be sluggish. She would have a hard time concentrating; she was depressed,” said CTR Nurse Practitioner Robin Lawrie. “Now, because she’s feeling better, there’s a sparkle in her eye. There’s a jump in her step.”

Tamara is just one of many women finding comfort and relief through menopausal research studies at CTR, thanks to state-of-the-art medication and a caring staff to help her understand her symptoms.

“One of the things I’ve been very happy about here at Clinical Trials Research is that we do so many women’s health studies,” said Lawrie.

CTR’s Principal Investigator, Dr. Jeff Wayne, and his team have worked on over 260 clinical trials and helped more than 1,000 patients during those research studies by providing medications and education.

“There is a lot of research being done right now in the vasomotor symptoms – or hot flashes – that people experience, and all of the other things that go along with them,” said Lawrie.

The small but mighty team at CTR has helped patients receive relief from chronic diseases, including insomnia, high blood pressure and diabetes, and women’s health studies are always a priority for the Sacramento-based staff.

Managing Menopause

Even given all the advances in modern medicine, women today still don’t have a lot of treatment options when it comes to menopause. But CTR’s research studies give them the chance to live easier lives by helping to approve relief medications.

After she turned 51, Tamara’s menopause got progressively worse. “Night sweats, waking up in the middle of the night, not being able to sleep,” she said. “I was freezing out my kids – they were like, ‘It’s really cold in here,’ and I would just be hot all the time.”

But ever since joining not one but two different menopause studies at CTR, Tamara can feel a difference in her work as a therapist and in her personal life as well.

“I don’t know if [my menopause] would be the same without the study,” said Tamara. And she’s not the only one.

“Patients tell us that they are not having hot flashes; their lives are being turned around,” said Lawrie. “They have a higher quality of life, they feel better and they’re better functioning.”

Individualized Clinical Research Studies

CTR takes time to prepare every patient before clinical trials, so that the men and women who come to one of the company’s two offices feel comfortable and educated about the process before it even begins. They also take the time to educate patients about their disease or symptoms, giving patients a better understanding of what is going on with their bodies.

“I’m more aware about what’s going on with me,” said Tamara, who in addition to medication treatment has also received educational materials about menopause and how to deal with the stress that goes along with it. “Before, I didn’t understand a lot of it.”

The patients who come to CTR benefit greatly from the clinical research studies, but the outcomes also have a positive effect on the researchers themselves.

“If we can make a difference in somebody’s life, so they can have control over their life and make better choices – then I think we’ve done our job,” said Lawrie. “I know that what we do here is important.”

To learn more about CTR’s menopause studies, or about what other research opportunities are available, head to https://www.ctrsites.com/.