Health leaders are pushing back against a recent article in an influential oncology publication that makes dire statements about the viability and safety of Moores Cancer Center.in The Cancer Letter, a weekly digital publication that details industry news nationwide, the piece says that patient safety and clinical trials at Moores are “at risk” due to ongoing difficulties in the organization’s clinical trials office.
All human research programs in the United States are required to have institutional review boards to make sure that patient rights are protected and to collect reports of “adverse events” for investigation if something goes wrong while trials are underway. Comprehensive Cancer Centers such as Moores are also required to maintain external advisory boards made up of cancer experts not affiliated with the university.
“At no point do I — or anyone I quote — state that harm to patients has occurred,” Goldberg said. “Discussion is focused on theA significant part of the Cancer Letter writeup focuses on a report from a consultant which reportedly found problems with the functioning of clinical trials at Moores, recommending a revamp of the office. Provided to Goldberg by an unnamed source, the university is not releasing the document, calling it an unfinished draft.
According to the National Cancer Institute, Moores received $5.2 million in cancer center support grant funding during the 2021 fiscal year. But that level of annual support, on top of funding for specific research projects, comes with expectations. Centers are expected to engage not just in drug trials on behalf of the pharmaceutical industry, but also in “investigator initiated trials” that test novel new ideas dreamed up by a center’s resident researchers.