The goal is to propel clinical trials aimed at speeding-up the diagnosis and treatment of ME/CFS and long COVID patients. The trials, slated to enroll up to 1,000 participants, are set to unveil outcomes as early as this year, marking a significant stride in the quest for enhanced medical solutions for these debilitating conditions.
Myalgic encephalomyelitis, also called chronic fatigue syndrome or ME/CFS, is a long-term condition with a wide range of symptoms. The most common symptom is extreme tiredness.
ME/CFS can affect anyone, including children. It is more common in women and tends to develop between their mid-twenties and mid-forties.
Set against the backdrop of Salt Lake City, US, and Oxford, UK, this collaborative endeavor aims to validate the safety and efficacy of novel diagnostics and pioneering clinical pathways tailored for ME/CFS and long COVID. Using innovative genotypic diagnostic tests, meticulously crafted to furnish clinicians with precise insights into individual disease risks, the trials aspire to revolutionize patient care paradigms.
Mechanisms underpinning Long COVID
At the heart of this initiative lies PrecisionLife's profound understanding of the intricate mechanisms underpinning ME/CFS and Long COVID, complemented by Metrodora's extensive clinical and research acumen. Moreover, in collaboration with prominent patient charities such as Action for ME and the world-renowned DecodeME study, this partnership endeavors to chart new frontiers in medical research and patient welfare.
“Embarking on clinical trials for the latest ME/CFS and Long COVID diagnostics at Metrodora marks a pivotal moment," said Rohit Gupta, Metrodora's chief scientific officer.
“This endeavor not only affords patients early access to vital diagnostic insights but also underscores our commitment to unraveling the biological underpinnings of these ailments to enhance patient care.”
In a bid to expedite the approval of personalized treatments, the partners have identified a spectrum of promising drug repurposing candidates, harboring potential disease-modifying attributes. If proven efficacious in the forthcoming trials, these candidates hold the promise of ushering in a new era of tailored therapeutics, tailored to individual patient needs.
Unravelling the mechanistic causes of ME
Steve Gardner, CEO of PrecisionLife, emphasized the importance of the collaboration, he said: “In Metrodora, we have found a partner who shares our zeal for validating next-generation precision diagnostics and deciphering disease mechanisms. With our combined expertise, we are poised to deliver groundbreaking tests catering to a diverse array of patient communities.”
Echoing this sentiment, Sonya Chowdhury, CEO of Action for ME, “Unravelling the mechanistic causes of ME enables us to better diagnose individual patients and identify existing therapies that may be effective in treating them,” added Sonya Chowdhury, CEO of Action for ME.
“We hope that actionable clinical trials like these will lead to faster, more accurate diagnosis as well as new treatment options for patients. This will in turn spur on new and much-needed research into the illnesses.”
With recruitment slated to commence in June via Metrodora's research platform, Metrodora Connect, these clinical trials herald a new dawn in the quest to alleviate the burden of ME/CFS and Long Covid, offering a ray of hope to patients worldwide.
