The 3TR project has entered a new phase, and is developing definitions of response and non-response to biological treatments for patients with severe asthma.
3TR is an EU project to understand responses to therapy and disease progression of several different autoimmune, inflammatory and allergic diseases including asthma. The project is the biggest ever funded by the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI), a public-private partnership that includes the European Commission.
EFA has worked with the European Lung Foundation (ELF) to recruit patients and coordinate a Patient Working Group (PWG) to support patient engagement with researchers to determine the course of project priorities and outcomes.
In the previous phase of the project, severe asthma patients and carers worked alongside researchers and patient representatives to determine Core Outcome Measure (COM) sets for both adult and paediatric severe asthma patients. COMs are recommendations for other researchers as to what should be measured in all trial settings for specific disease areas, for example lung function and quality of life. By using COMs, it becomes possible to compare data across trial settings for a greater understanding of disease treatment. Importantly, including patients in this process helps to ensure that each study measures aspects that are truly important to patients.
In this new phase of the study, the PWG will work with researchers to develop patient-centred definitions of response and non-response to biological treatments. Currently, there is no definition for whether a biological treatment is working or not for severe asthma. Defining a response will help doctors and patients to decide whether a biological treatment should be continued or if alternative treatments should be used instead.
The EFA network has been integral to our renewed recruitment efforts, welcoming over 10 new severe asthma patients to the PWG, and counting.
The definition of response study will culminate in March.
Stay tuned for project updates by signing up to the EFA newsletter and checking on the 3TR website.