MRA supported the SARSTer project - testing therapeutic options used in the fight against COVID-19
The Medical Research Agency, on behalf of the Minister of Health, has funded a project of researchers from the Societas Polona Epidemiologrum et Medicorum Contagigosorum (PTEiLChZ) who will test the effectiveness and safety of various COVID-19 therapy options used in Poland since the beginning of the epidemic.
The results of the SARSTer project led by prof. dr. hab. Robert Flisiak (president of PTEiLChZ) will allow to assess the efficacy and safety of the tested drugs in real clinical practice conditions and to identify optimal treatment conditions. The project focuses particular attention on therapies recommended in current PTEiLChZ recommendations for SARS-CoV-2 infection, which include treatment with remdesivir and tocilizumab.
The SARSTer project commissioned by the Minister of Health is an important part of the strategy to combat the pandemic. The conclusions of the study will be used to make important decisions in the next steps of countering the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus," comments the Acting Commissioner. President of the Medical Research Agency Radosław Sierpiński., MD PhD.
Participation in the project was declared by 30 Polish centers treating SARS-CoV-2 infections, in which it is planned to analyze data of 10 000 patients with COVID-19 diagnosis.
The data obtained through SARSTer will be published on an ongoing basis and will allow to update the recommendations of PTEiLChZ, which in turn, through their use in clinical practice will lead to optimization of therapeutic management in COVID-19 in the conditions of the Polish health care system.
The structure of the SARSTer project is based on the experience that PTEiLChZ has gained in the implementation of many previous multicenter programs coordinated by this scientific society, especially the still active EpiTer-2 program, which, starting in 2015, has allowed to collect data of nearly 13 thousand patients treated for hepatitis C in Poland. The results of the analyses obtained from this database have already been published in 13 original papers in reputable journals. We hope that the willingness of Polish centres to cooperate and previous experience will allow this success to be repeated within the SARSTer project - concludes prof. Rober Flisiak, project manager.