Cancer, migraine and spinal cord patients needed for separate studies

Photo: Louis Reed, Unsplash

Three Central Okanagan organizations are seeking people to participate in studies or trials, all in an effort to finding treatments or making life better.

Those with metastatic cancer, spinal cord injuries or migraines are the three groups of people being sought:

• BC Cancer Kelowna is conducting a behavioural study about alternative health-care use in metastatic cancer, which is defined as non-conventional treatment instead of the traditional standard of care. The study will revolve around treatment misinformation cancer patients get from social media.

The study, which is being conducted by Dr. Kaethe Clarke, intends to improve health-care providers’ understanding of what is motivating patients in their pursuit of alternative health care for their cancer diagnosis.

If you or someone you know is interested in participating in this study, contact the study team at [email protected].

• UBCO’s Dr. Kathleen Martin Ginis is hoping to recruit as many as 60 participants for a project called “Exercise guidelines and Promotion and Implementation in Chronic Spinal Cord Injury.”

Anyone who wants to participate must be 18 or older, experience chronic pain and have been diagnosed with a spinal cord injury more than a year ago at C3 or below. You must be doing less than 40 minutes of moderate aerobic exercises per week and fewer than two days per week of strengthening exercises.

Participants are compensated for visits to the UBCO lab and receive a gift card upon completion of the study.

Study participants are also asked to complete an online or phone questionnaire and attend three in-person visits to UBC Okanagan—at entry into the study and again at three and six months.

During the visits, participants are asked to undergo a fitness test, a brief pain sensation test and provide a blood sample.

If you or someone you know wants to volunteer, email [email protected] or call 236-970-6226 with any questions.

• Finally, Okanagan Clinical Trials is doing a trial to determine the effectiveness of an investigational medication for episodic migraines.

To be eligible to participate in the study, volunteers must be 19 years or older. Approximately 660 participants will participate in the study.

Investigational treatment will not affect provincial medical coverage, and all study-related costs will be paid for by the sponsor. Participants are free to leave the study at any time.

To learn more about the study or to volunteer, please visit www.okanaganclinicaltrials.com or call Okanagan Clinical Trials at 250-862-8141.