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Idiopathic Dilated CardiomyopathyNCT03037632

DCM Precision Medicine Study

A study testing Family Heart Talk Booklet in people with Idiopathic Dilated Cardiomyopathy, run by Ray Hershberger at 26 sites in United States.

Active, not recruiting

Under way, not looking for participants. Everyone needed has enrolled. The study is still running.

Official record
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Trial summary

The aims of the DCM Precision Medicine Study are to test the hypothesis that DCM has substantial genetic basis and to evaluate the effectiveness of a family communication intervention in improving the uptake and impact of family member clinical screening. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Any age
Conditions the study is for
Idiopathic Dilated Cardiomyopathy
What is being tested?
Family Heart Talk Booklet
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
6,500 participants
Where
26 sitesUnited States
Study dates
7 Jun 2016to 30 Jun 2026
Phase
Interventional
Are there results?
Not yet: the study is under way

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

  • Meeting criteria for dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) :
  • Left ventricular ejection fraction <50%
  • Left ventricular enlargement (A left ventricular end-diastolic dimension > 95%tile population standard based on gender and height).
  • Detectable causes of cardiomyopathy, except genetic, excluded beyond a reasonable doubt at the time of DCM diagnosis (that is, meeting clinical criteria for idiopathic DCM)
  • Any age (including children)
  • Non-Hispanic and Hispanic ethnicity
Show all 10Show fewer
  • All races (PI pre-approval required for recruitment beyond pre-specified recruitment targets).
  • Ability to give informed consent
  • Ability to communicate in English (except Spanish language at sites approved to recruit individuals of Hispanic ethnicity)
  • Willingness to participate in a family-based study (patient willing to work with a clinical site and/or OSU to facilitate the recruitment and enrollment of family members to the study).

Who cannot join

  • Coronary artery disease (CAD) causing ischemic cardiomyopathy (> 50% narrowing, any major epicardial coronary artery)
  • Primary valvular disease
  • Adriamycin or other cardiotoxic drug exposure
  • Other forms of cardiomyopathy: Hypertrophic, Restrictive, or Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Dysplasia/Cardiomyopathy
  • Congenital heart disease
  • Other detectable causes of dilated cardiomyopathy, including sarcoid and hemochromatosis.
Show all 9Show fewer
  • Other active multi-system disease that may cause DCM (e.g., active connective tissue disease).
  • Severe and untreated or untreatable hypertension (systolic blood pressures routinely greater than 180 mm Hg and/or diastolic blood pressures greater than 120 mm Hg, and if resistant to multidrug treatment).
  • However, conventional risk factors for DCM, including obesity, routinely treated hypertension, alcohol use, pregnancy or the peri-partum period, or left ventricular noncompaction, will NOT be considered exclusion criteria.

Trial locations and contacts

26 sites in 1 country.

26 sites in 1 country

United States26 sites

  • University of Michigan

    Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48187

  • Emory University

    Atlanta, Georgia, 30322

  • University of Maryland

    Baltimore, Maryland, 21201

  • Cedars-Sinai Medical Center

    Beverly Hills, California, 90211

  • University of Alabama at Birmingham

    Birmingham, Alabama, 35294

  • Tufts Medical Center

    Boston, Massachusetts, 02111

  • Medical University of South Carolina

    Charleston, South Carolina, 29425

  • Northwestern University

    Chicago, Illinois, 60611

  • Cleveland Clinic

    Cleveland, Ohio, 44195

  • Ohio State University

    Columbus, Ohio, 43210

  • University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

    Dallas, Texas, 75390

  • Inova Heart and Vascular Institute

    Fairfax, Virginia, 22042

  • Houston Methodist Hospital

    Houston, Texas, 77030

  • University of Mississippi Medical Center

    Jackson, Mississippi, 39216

  • UCLA Medical Center

    Los Angeles, California, 90095

  • South Miami Heart Center

    Miami, Florida, 33143

  • Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans

    New Orleans, Louisiana, 70112

  • NYU School of Medicine

    New York, New York, 10016

  • University of Nebraska Medical Center

    Omaha, Nebraska, 68198

  • Stanford University

    Palo Alto, California, 94304

  • University of Pennsylvania

    Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104

  • University of Utah

    Salt Lake City, Utah, 84132

  • University of Washington

    Seattle, Washington, 98195

  • Washington University in St. Louis

    St Louis, Missouri, 63110

  • University of Arizona Sarver Heart Center

    Tucson, Arizona, 85724

  • Medstar Washington Hospital Center (DC)

    Washington D.C., District of Columbia, 20010

Other trials in United States

About this study

Official title: Precision Medicine for Dilated Cardiomyopathy in European and African Ancestry

The aims of the DCM Precision Medicine Study are to test the hypothesis that DCM has substantial genetic basis and to evaluate the effectiveness of a family communication intervention in improving the uptake and impact of family member clinical screening.

Read the detailed description

Dilated cardiomyopathy of unknown cause (DCM), known clinically as idiopathic dilated cardiomypathy, is the most common cardiomyopathy and is the leading cause of heart transplantation. DCM affects approximately one million individuals, and so has a major impact on US public health. DCM is commonly asymptomatic until very late in its course when it causes heart failure, disability, and death. Because of its clinical course, any means to identify patients at risk for DCM or to detect DCM in its asymptomatic phase could provide enormous opportunity for intervention to extend lives and prevent late-stage disease. Within this paradigm precision medicine for DCM could greatly impact health care outcomes and costs. Recent advances in DCM genetics have introduced these possibilities, but unresolved questions of familial recurrence risk, genetic etiology, racial differences, and family-based screening must be addressed to move ahead. The central hypothesis of this study, based on published studies of the investigative group, states that DCM has substantial genetic basis. For this study the investigators hypothesize that: (a) 35% of probands of both European and African ancestry (EA/AA) will be classified as familial in a cohort recruited in a multicenter US consortium and given explicit recommendations and assistance to achieve the clinical screening of relatives; (b) approximately 40% of DCM probands, whether categorized as familial or non-familial, or as EA or AA, will have pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants in genes previously implicated in DCM; and (c) a tailored intervention to help DCM probands communicate DCM risk to their family members will improve the uptake and impact of necessary clinical and genetic testing. To test these hypotheses, the investigators propose to: (1) estimate and compare the frequencies of EA and AA DCM probands classified as having familial DCM; (2) estimate and compare the proportions of probands with an identifiable genetic cause of DCM in groups defined by proband classification (familial/non-familial) and ancestry (EA/AA); and (3) evaluate the impact of a randomized intervention to aid and direct family communication on participation of at-risk family members in clinical screening and appropriate follow-up surveillance for DCM. These aims will be accomplished by recruiting a cohort of 1300 DCM probands (600 EA, 600 AA, 100 Hispanic ethnicity), performing cardiovascular clinical screening of 2600 family members, performing genetic testing of probands and affected family members by exome sequencing, returning genetic results, and randomizing probands to an intervention to improve family communication regarding DCM risk. Proving these hypotheses would be transformative for the field: rather than viewing DCM as only a clinical diagnosis, cardiovascular professionals would understand DCM as a genetic disease that should be managed using genetic diagnostic and family-based preventive strategies. These study results would make precision medicine for DCM a reality.

Being tested
Family Heart Talk Booklet
Medical subject headings
Cardiomyopathy, Dilated

What participants receive

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

  • Family Heart Talk BookletBehavioural

Study groups in NCT03037632
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Communication ToolExperimentalNot described
Receives: Behavioral: Family Heart Talk Booklet
No Communication ToolNo interventionNot described

What is being measured

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

  1. Family clinical screening completed within 12 months from proband enrollment.

    The probability that a living first-degree relative (FDR) without a previous definitive DCM diagnosis completes clinical screening for DCM within 12 months after proband recruitment

    Measured: 12 months from proband enrollment.

  2. Living first-degree relative adheres to cardiovascular surveillance recommendations after return of genetic results.

    The probability that a living first-degree relative adheres to surveillance recommendations within 15 months after the proband receives individual genetic test information.

    Measured: 2.5 years

Timeline

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

  1. First posted31 Jan 2017 (estimated)
  2. Study start7 Jun 2016
  3. Primary completion30 Jun 2026 (estimated)
  4. Study completion30 Jun 2026 (estimated)

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 N/A
Primary purpose
Prevention
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Masking
Double blind
Who is masked
Participant, Investigator
Enrolment
6,500 participants (estimated)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT03037632
Sponsor's protocol ID
2015H0309
Other IDs
R01HL128857
Status last verified
Jul 2025
First submitted
27 Jan 2017
Last updated
30 Jul 2025
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
Yes
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
Individual data sharing
No

Publications

  • Cowan JR, Hershberger RE. Transcriptomics and Beyond in Dilated Cardiomyopathy. JACC Basic Transl Sci. 2023 Apr 24;8(4):419-421. doi: 10.1016/j.jacbts.2023.01.016. eCollection 2023 Apr.

    PubMed 37138804

  • Jordan E, Ni H, Parker P, Kinnamon DD, Owens A, Lowes B, Shenoy C, Martin CM, Judge DP, Fishbein DP, Stoller D, Minami E, Kransdorf E, Smart F, Haas GJ, Huggins GS, Ewald GA, Diamond J, Wilcox JE, Jimenez J, Wang J, Tallaj J, Drazner MH, Hofmeyer M, Wheeler MT, Pinzon OW, Shah P, Gottlieb SS, Katz S, Shore S, Tang WHW, Hershberger RE; DCM Precision Medicine study of the DCM Consortium. Implementing Precision Medicine for Dilated Cardiomyopathy: Insights from The DCM Consortium. medRxiv [Preprint]. 2024 Nov 26:2024.11.22.24317816. doi: 10.1101/2024.11.22.24317816.

    PubMed 39649582

  • Kransdorf EP, Jain R, Mead JO, Haas G, Hofmeyer M, Ewald GA, Diamond J, Owens A, Lowes B, Stoller D, Tang WHW, Drazner MH, Martin CM, Shah P, Tallaj J, Katz S, Jimenez J, Shore S, Smart F, Wang J, Gottlieb SS, Judge DP, Huggins GS, Cowan J, Parker P, Cao J, Hurst NS, Jordan E, Ni H, Kinnamon DD, Hershberger RE. Evaluation of Women with Peripartum or Dilated Cardiomyopathy and Their First-Degree Relatives: The DCM Precision Medicine Study. medRxiv [Preprint]. 2025 Jun 8:2025.02.18.25322501. doi: 10.1101/2025.02.18.25322501.

    PubMed 40034776

  • Hershberger RE, Ni H. Systemic Immune-Mediated Diseases and Dilated Cardiomyopathy. JACC Heart Fail. 2025 Jan;13(1):146-148. doi: 10.1016/j.jchf.2024.11.002. No abstract available.

    PubMed 39779179

  • Ni H, Jordan E, Cao J, Kinnamon DD, Gottlieb SS, Hofmeyer M, Jimenez J, Judge DP, Kransdorf E, Morris AA, Owens A, Shah P, Tang WHW, Wang J, Hershberger RE. Knowledge of Genome Sequencing and Trust in Medical Researchers Among Patients of Different Racial and Ethnic Groups With Idiopathic Dilated Cardiomyopathy. JAMA Cardiol. 2023 Jan 1;8(1):33-42. doi: 10.1001/jamacardio.2022.4132.

    PubMed 36383367

  • Jordan ES, Grover PL, Lin J, Starkey CA, Finley EA, Ni H, Hershberger RE. The DCM Project Portal: A direct-to-participant platform of The DCM Research Project. Am Heart J Plus. 2024 Feb;38:100356. doi: 10.1016/j.ahjo.2023.100356. Epub 2023 Dec 27.

    PubMed 38348286

  • Hofmeyer M, Haas GJ, Jordan E, Cao J, Kransdorf E, Ewald GA, Morris AA, Owens A, Lowes B, Stoller D, Wilson Tang WH, Garg S, Trachtenberg BH, Shah P, Pamboukian SV, Sweitzer NK, Wheeler MT, Wilcox JE, Katz S, Pan S, Jimenez J, Smart F, Wang J, Gottlieb SS, Judge DP, Moore CK, Huggins GS, Kinnamon DD, Ni H, Hershberger RE; DCM Precision Medicine Study of the DCM Consortium. Rare Variant Genetics and Dilated Cardiomyopathy Severity: The DCM Precision Medicine Study. Circulation. 2023 Sep 12;148(11):872-881. doi: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.123.064847. Epub 2023 Aug 29.

    PubMed 37641966

  • Kinnamon DD, Morales A, Bowen DJ, Burke W, Hershberger RE; DCM Consortium*. Toward Genetics-Driven Early Intervention in Dilated Cardiomyopathy: Design and Implementation of the DCM Precision Medicine Study. Circ Cardiovasc Genet. 2017 Dec;10(6):e001826. doi: 10.1161/CIRCGENETICS.117.001826.

    PubMed 29237686

  • Morales A, Kinnamon DD, Jordan E, Platt J, Vatta M, Dorschner MO, Starkey CA, Mead JO, Ai T, Burke W, Gastier-Foster J, Jarvik GP, Rehm HL, Nickerson DA, Hershberger RE; DCM Precision Medicine study of the DCM Consortium; DCM Consortium institutions and personnel participating in this study: Study Principal Investigator and Co-Investigators,DCM Consortium Clinical Site Principal Investigators and Clinical Site Other Significant Contributors (OSC). The following clinical sites and individuals contributed to the submission of RO 1 H L 128857 as Site Principal Investigators (Site Pl) or as Other Significant Contributors (OSC),Dr. Huggins also served as study co-principal investigator,The following clinical site was added following approval of NHGRI supplemental funding but prior to initiation of enrollment,The following clinical sites were added following study activation. Variant Interpretation for Dilated Cardiomyopathy: Refinement of the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics/ClinGen Guidelines for the DCM Precision Medicine Study. Circ Genom Precis Med. 2020 Apr;13(2):e002480. doi: 10.1161/CIRCGEN.119.002480. Epub 2020 Mar 11.

    PubMed 32160020

  • Kinnamon DD, Jordan E, Haas GJ, Hofmeyer M, Kransdorf E, Ewald GA, Morris AA, Owens A, Lowes B, Stoller D, Tang WHW, Garg S, Trachtenberg BH, Shah P, Pamboukian SV, Sweitzer NK, Wheeler MT, Wilcox JE, Katz S, Pan S, Jimenez J, Aaronson KD, Fishbein DP, Smart F, Wang J, Gottlieb SS, Judge DP, Moore CK, Mead JO, Huggins GS, Ni H, Burke W, Hershberger RE; DCM Precision Medicine Study of the DCM Consortium. Effectiveness of the Family Heart Talk Communication Tool in Improving Family Member Screening for Dilated Cardiomyopathy: Results of a Randomized Trial. Circulation. 2023 Apr 25;147(17):1281-1290. doi: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.122.062507. Epub 2023 Mar 20.

    PubMed 36938756

  • Haas GJ, Zareba KM, Ni H, Bello-Pardo E, Huggins GS, Hershberger RE; Study Principal Investigator (PI) and Co-Investigators: The Ohio State University. Validating an Idiopathic Dilated Cardiomyopathy Diagnosis Using Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance: The Dilated Cardiomyopathy Precision Medicine Study. Circ Heart Fail. 2022 May;15(5):e008877. doi: 10.1161/CIRCHEARTFAILURE.121.008877. Epub 2022 Mar 4.

    PubMed 35240856

  • Huggins GS, Kinnamon DD, Haas GJ, Jordan E, Hofmeyer M, Kransdorf E, Ewald GA, Morris AA, Owens A, Lowes B, Stoller D, Tang WHW, Garg S, Trachtenberg BH, Shah P, Pamboukian SV, Sweitzer NK, Wheeler MT, Wilcox JE, Katz S, Pan S, Jimenez J, Aaronson KD, Fishbein DP, Smart F, Wang J, Gottlieb SS, Judge DP, Moore CK, Mead JO, Ni H, Burke W, Hershberger RE; DCM Precision Medicine Study of the DCM Consortium. Prevalence and Cumulative Risk of Familial Idiopathic Dilated Cardiomyopathy. JAMA. 2022 Feb 1;327(5):454-463. doi: 10.1001/jama.2021.24674.

    PubMed 35103767

  • Burke W, Hovick SR, Jordan E, Ni H, Kinnamon DD, Hershberger RE. Communal Coping as a Strategy to Enhance Family Engagement in Dilated Cardiomyopathy. Circ Genom Precis Med. 2022 Jun;15(3):e003541. doi: 10.1161/CIRCGEN.121.003541. Epub 2022 May 10.

    PubMed 35536229

  • Trachtenberg BH, Jimenez J, Morris AA, Kransdorf E, Owens A, Fishbein DP, Jordan E, Kinnamon DD, Mead JO, Huggins GS, Hershberger RE; DCM Precision Medicine Study of the DCM Consortium. TTR variants in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy: An investigation of the DCM Precision Medicine Study. Genet Med. 2022 Jul;24(7):1495-1502. doi: 10.1016/j.gim.2022.03.011. Epub 2022 Apr 18.

    PubMed 35438637

  • Hershberger RE, Cowan J, Jordan E, Kinnamon DD. The Complex and Diverse Genetic Architecture of Dilated Cardiomyopathy. Circ Res. 2021 May 14;128(10):1514-1532. doi: 10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.121.318157. Epub 2021 May 13.

    PubMed 33983834

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing Family Heart Talk Booklet in people with Idiopathic Dilated Cardiomyopathy, run by Ray Hershberger at 26 sites in United States.

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 10 inclusion and 9 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: under way, not looking for participants, as of the sponsor's last update on 30 Jul 2025. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 26 sites in United States. 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.

Are results available for this study?

This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.

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?

Family clinical screening completed within 12 months from proband enrollment. (time frame: 12 months from proband enrollment.). The study lists 2 primary outcomes in all. 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 NCT03037632, which also lists 22 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 30 Jul 2025; AzTrials last refreshed its copy on 31 Oct 2026.

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