Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust
Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust supports the STAR consortium.
The Stenosis Therapy and Anti-Fibrotic Research (STAR) consortium has had a breakthrough in Crohn’s disease treatment. Researchers have been able to develop reliable measurement methods of intestinal strictures using CT and MRI imaging. Published in Radiography, this development is said to mark a “significant step toward effective medical therapies for Crohn’s disease-related intestinal strictures.”
By demonstrating the reliable measurement and description of intestinal strictures, this innovation fills the gap that there aren’t any medical therapies for Crohn’s intestinal strictures. STAR’s approach utilises both MRI and CT imaging of the bowel to provide consistent results across patients and interpreting radiologists.
Following this breakthrough, the consortium is looking to develop antifibrotic therapies in stricturing Crohn’s disease by leveraging reliable, measurable radiological outcomes for clinical trials. These imaging techniques can then determine patient eligibility for clinical trials and assess the effectiveness of antifibrotic therapies. Additionally, these methods can be used by radiologists, gastroenterologists, and surgeons.
“At Helmsley, we are committed to supporting research that builds standards and biomarkers for Crohn's disease, which are crucial to the development of new therapies,” said Laurie Churchill, Program Officer at the Helmsley Charitable Trust. “These new findings from the STAR Consortium bring us closer to developing treatments for intestinal strictures — we are proud to continue to support this important work.”
Florian Rieder M.D., Vice Department Chair and Director of Global Translational IBD at the Cleveland Clinic added, “Our research findings provide much-needed tools for the medical community to allow testing of anti-stricture therapies in our Crohn's disease patients. Treating strictures is one of the largest unmet needs in the field of inflammatory bowel diseases. This work, performed by an international, multi-institutional and multidisciplinary expert team paves the way to novel therapy approaches.”
“This research is a milestone in our ability to fight Crohn's disease with imaging technology. For the first time, we have a reliable way to measure and track intestinal strictures, opening the door to targeted therapies that could drastically improve patient outcomes. We are excited about the potential of this research to transform the lives of those suffering from this debilitating condition,” concluded Brian G. Feagan, M.D., Senior Scientific Director at Alimentiv.
About the STAR consortium
Composed of researchers from Alimentiv Inc., Cleveland Clinic, and Mayo Clinic, and supported by The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust, the STAR consortium is focused on transforming the treatment of Crohn’s disease strictures through its research projects.