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Multiple SclerosisPhase 1/2NCT00364936

Development and Evaluation of a New Palliative Care Service for People Severely Affected With Multiple Sclerosis (MS)

A Phase 1/2 study testing Palliative care service in people with Multiple Sclerosis, run by King's College London at 1 site in United Kingdom.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
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Trial summary

The primary purpose of this study is to develop, implement and conduct a preliminary evaluation of a new service for people who are severely affected by multiple sclerosis. The investigators conducted open interviews with patients, families and staff, plus a literature review to model and pilot this new service. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Any age
Conditions the study is for
Multiple Sclerosis
What is being tested?
Palliative care service
Type of treatment
Surgery or procedure
How many people
52 participants
Where
1 siteUnited Kingdom
Study dates
Mar 2004to Dec 2006
Phase
Phase 1/2
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages Any age
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Child, Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Diagnosis of MS
  • Living in South East London
  • Having possible palliative care needs. Referrers were encouraged to identify people as severely affected with MS based on their clinical need, rather than relying on any standardised measures of disability. However, since a large Canadian population study identified that approximately 15% of people with MS have an Expanded Disability Scale Score of 8 or more (out of a possible 10)23, this was also suggested to referrers as a benchmark for disability that would prompt consideration of referral. Examples of palliative care needs were given as unresolved symptoms, psychosocial concerns, and end of life issues, progressive illness or complex needs.

Who cannot join

  • patients deemed as having urgent needs (following independent review by a consultant in palliative medicine) because of rapid deterioration or severe symptoms - these were seen immediately by the service.

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United Kingdom1 site

  • King's College Hospital

    London, London, SE5 9RJ

Other trials in United Kingdom

About this study

Official title: Proposal to Create a Flagship Neurology and Palliative Care Service for South London

The primary purpose of this study is to develop, implement and conduct a preliminary evaluation of a new service for people who are severely affected by multiple sclerosis. The investigators conducted open interviews with patients, families and staff, plus a literature review to model and pilot this new service. Then the investigators developed, tested and ran the service and will evaluate it using a randomised controlled trial, where people affected by MS are randomised to either receive the service immediately (fast track group) or after a three month wait (standard best practice). This methodology follows that of the Medical Research Council (MRC) framework for the development and evaluation of complex services and treatments. The investigators interview people and their carers in the fast track and standard practice groups, and followed them over time. This phase of trial enables us to calculate sample size and test proof of concept for a full randomised trial. However, our working hypothesis was that there would be no difference between those people who received the fast track service or the standard best practice in terms of symptom controlled, and carer needs.

Read the detailed description

Palliative care has been proposed to help meet the needs of patients who suffer progressive non-cancer conditions but this has not been tested. Multiple sclerosis is a chronic disease affecting the central nervous system affecting over 2.5 million people worldwide, and is the commonest cause of neurological disability in adults under 60 years. It is associated with a wide spectrum of physical symptoms, including loss of function of legs, arms and in many instances bladder and bowel dysfunction, pain, spasms, swallowing and communication and cognitive difficulties, many of which are as severe as among patients with cancer. Therefore it seems appropriate to try to develop palliative care services for this group of patients.

Our design followed the MRC Framework for the Evaluation of Complex Interventions. The investigators modelled a new palliative care and neurology service for patients affected by Multiple Sclerosis (MS) by conducting qualitative interviews with patients, families and staff, plus a literature review to model and pilot the service. Then the investigators started to offer the service and designed a delayed intervention randomised controlled trial to test its effectiveness as part of phase II of the MRC framework. Inclusion criteria for the trial were patients identified by referring clinicians as having unresolved symptoms or psychological concerns. A disability of scoring greater than 8 on the Expanded Disability Scale was identified as a benchmark. Consenting patients newly referred to the new service were randomised to either receive the palliative care service immediately (fast-track) or after a 12-week wait (standard best practice). Face to face interviews were conducted at baseline (before intervention), and at 4-6, 10-12 (before intervention for the standard-practice group), 16-18 and 22-24 weeks with patients and their carers using standard questionnaires to assess symptoms, palliative care outcomes, function, service use and open comments. The investigators choice of outcomes was based on a systematic literature review of outcome measures.

Being tested
Palliative care service
Keywords
palliative care, hospice, end-of-life, symptom control, evaluation, effectiveness
Medical subject headings
Multiple Sclerosis, Death

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Palliative care serviceProcedure or surgery

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Palliative Care Outcome Scale - Symptoms

    Measured: 12 weeks

Secondary outcomes (7)

  1. Self-reported quality of life

    Measured: 12 weeks

  2. Impact of MS

    Measured: 12 weeks

  3. Psychosocial palliative care outcomes

    Measured: 12 weeks

  4. use of health and social services

    Measured: 12 weeks

  5. Experience of hospital services

    Measured: 12 weeks

  6. Carer burden and satisfaction

    Measured: 12 weeks

  7. Costs (formal and informal)

    Measured: 12 weeks

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted16 Aug 2006 (estimated)
  2. Study startMar 2004
  3. Study completionDec 2006

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase 1/2
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Crossover
Masking
None (open label)
Enrolment
52 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT00364936
Sponsor's protocol ID
MS Society 676/01
Status last verified
Jun 2009
First submitted
14 Aug 2006
Last updated
11 Jun 2009
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
Yes

Publications

  • Gruenewald DA, Higginson IJ, Vivat B, Edmonds P, Burman RE. Quality of life measures for the palliative care of people severely affected by multiple sclerosis: a systematic review. Mult Scler. 2004 Dec;10(6):690-704. doi: 10.1191/1352458504ms1116rr.

    PubMed 15584496

  • Edmonds P, Vivat B, Burman R, Silber E, Higginson IJ. 'Fighting for everything': service experiences of people severely affected by multiple sclerosis. Mult Scler. 2007 Jun;13(5):660-7. doi: 10.1177/1352458506071789. Epub 2007 Feb 9.

    PubMed 17548447

  • Edmonds P, Vivat B, Burman R, Silber E, Higginson IJ. Loss and change: experiences of people severely affected by multiple sclerosis. Palliat Med. 2007 Mar;21(2):101-7. doi: 10.1177/0269216307076333.

    PubMed 17344258

  • Higginson IJ, Vivat B, Silber E, Saleem T, Burman R, Hart S, Edmonds P. Study protocol: delayed intervention randomised controlled trial within the Medical Research Council (MRC) Framework to assess the effectiveness of a new palliative care service. BMC Palliat Care. 2006 Oct 2;5:7. doi: 10.1186/1472-684X-5-7.

    PubMed 17014714

  • Higginson IJ, Hart S, Burman R, Silber E, Saleem T, Edmonds P. Randomised controlled trial of a new palliative care service: Compliance, recruitment and completeness of follow-up. BMC Palliat Care. 2008 May 28;7:7. doi: 10.1186/1472-684X-7-7.

    PubMed 18507817

  • Higginson IJ, Hart S, Silber E, Burman R, Edmonds P. Symptom prevalence and severity in people severely affected by multiple sclerosis. J Palliat Care. 2006 Autumn;22(3):158-65.

    PubMed 17058754

  • Higginson IJ, Costantini M, Silber E, Burman R, Edmonds P. Evaluation of a new model of short-term palliative care for people severely affected with multiple sclerosis: a randomised fast-track trial to test timing of referral and how long the effect is maintained. Postgrad Med J. 2011 Nov;87(1033):769-75. doi: 10.1136/postgradmedj-2011-130290. Epub 2011 Oct 6.

    PubMed 21978993

  • Higginson IJ, McCrone P, Hart SR, Burman R, Silber E, Edmonds PM. Is short-term palliative care cost-effective in multiple sclerosis? A randomized phase II trial. J Pain Symptom Manage. 2009 Dec;38(6):816-26. doi: 10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2009.07.002.

    PubMed 19833477

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A Phase 1/2 study testing Palliative care service in people with Multiple Sclerosis, run by King's College London at 1 site in United Kingdom.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 3 inclusion and 1 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 11 Jun 2009. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in United Kingdom. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

What does this combined phase mean?

Phase 1 studies test a treatment in a small group of people for the first time or in a new way, mainly to check safety and find the right dose.

Phase 2 studies give the treatment to a larger group to see whether it has the intended effect and to keep checking safety.

Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Palliative Care Outcome Scale - Symptoms (time frame: 12 weeks). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT00364936, which also lists 8 linked publications.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 11 Jun 2009.

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