Clinical Trials - looking for participants

The School of Veterinary Science has a number of clinical trials and research studies seeking volunteers and input from the public. Each trial or research study has varying requirements in regards to the assistance the investigators are requiring. We invite you to take a look at the current trials listed below to see if you can contribute.

Please note that all clinical trials and research have animal ethics and/or human ethics approvals, participation is voluntary and any participants can be removed from a trial at any time.

Trials

Dog Cancer Vaccine Trial

Trial of a novel autologous cancer vaccine and intratumoral Complete Freund’s adjuvant in dogs with various cancers as a treatment modality.

About our research: Cancer is common and devastating in Queenslanders and their dogs. For many decades, science relied on mice to help us research cancer, but treatments that work fantastically in mice frequently fail in human patients. Our research takes a different approach. We use pet dogs with natural cancer and no hope for other treatments to develop new cancer therapies. Cancer is common and devastating in our pet dogs and causes heartache for their families. Dog cancer is similar in appearance, behaviour, genetics and environmental causes to human cancers. We study lymphoma, melanoma, sarcomas, carcinomas and brain cancer. We test novel theranostics and immunotherapy treatments. Because dog and human cancer is so similar, dogs provide excellent safety and efficacy data on our treatments. Our treatments have cured pets, and are now helping human patients.

Please view our video on https://www.thinkable.org/submission_entries/a3GD1w8L and visit us on https://www.facebook.com/UQdogcancerIT/

Dear Pet Owner: Has your best furry friend recently been diagnosed with cancer? Dogs suitable for inclusion in the trial must have a confirmed diagnosis of either a mast cell tumour, lymphoma, melanoma, soft tissue sarcoma, or carcinoma by fine-needle aspiration or biopsy. We are currently researching new treatment modalities for this devastating disease, and are looking to collect samples and administer a new cancer vaccine to dogs with cancer, either as the only treatment, or in conjunction with traditional treatments administered by your veterinarian. By participating in this study you would help us discover why cancer happens, how the immune system reacts to cancer, and hopefully help fight the disease. If you’d like to enrol your pet, please contact us directly, or through your veterinarian.

Dear Veterinarian: Dr Rachel Allavena and lead research student Dr Annika Oksa Walker along with collaborators Dr Aude Fahrer of Australian National University and Dr Chris Weir at The University of Sydney are trialling novel immunotherapeutics for the treatment of various canine cancers. Dogs suitable for inclusion in the trial must have a confirmed diagnosis of either a mast cell tumour, lymphoma, melanoma, soft tissue sarcoma, or carcinoma by fine-needle aspiration or biopsy.

We are interested in enrolling both dogs that have either failed standard of care therapies (surgery, chemotherapy, radiation) or where these are not an option, as well as dogs currently receiving standard of care treatment by their veterinarian. The trial involves taking of small biopsies, needle aspirates and blood tests, whilst under short anaesthetics during the treatment period. Larger surgical samples are taken for dogs on the vaccine trial to allow vaccine manufacture. Access to the dogs’ medical history would be required.

Costs of the experimental treatment and sampling are covered; however costs of routine cancer treatment and the treatment of cancer side effects are not covered.

If you wish to discuss whether your dog is suitable for the trial please contact Dr Annika Oksa Walker on a.oksawalker@uq.edu.au or Dr Rachel Allavena on r.allavena@uq.edu.au

Attention referring vets: Referral for autopsy wanted for dogs and cats that have died from suspected or confirmed envenomations from snakes, ticks or toads.

Tick, toad and snake envenomations are some of the most common causes of fatal toxicity in Queensland dogs and cats. They are a cause of substantial heartache and economic cost to owners. Despite how common these conditions are, the pathology associated with them is poorly described.

We are currently undertaking a study to assess the pathological features of fatal envenomations by ticks, cane toads and snakes. If you are a referring vet and have a suspected or confirmed case, and the owner is willing to contribute their animal to this research a free autopsy can be arranged at the School of Veterinary Science Gatton Campus. The referring vet will need to provide a submission form for the autopsy referral and the animal’s medical history (which can be sent electronically). The referring vet will receive a free autopsy report including histopathology results, which can be shared with the owner if they desire. The animals can be sent for deep burial or private cremation as per the owner’s wishes after the examination, which will be prompt. If you have a case you would like to send for free autopsy examination please contact specialist anatomic pathologist Associate Professor Rachel Allavena on email r.allavena@uq.edu.au

If you are a pet owner: please discuss referral for this study with your veterinarian.

This study is approved by the University of Queensland Animal Ethics committee for production and companion animals.

Attention referring vets: Referral for autopsy wanted for dogs that have died from suspected or confirmed brain cancer.

Brain cancer is the biggest killer of children and people under 40 than any other type of cancer. We examine dog brain tumours for 'biomarkers', molecules expressed in high amounts by the tumour that are similar to those expressed in human brain cancer. Our goal is to develop a 'theranostic', which stands for therapy plus diagnostic, which both detects the tumour on medical imaging and treats it in a targeted fashion. Ideally, our biomarkers will guide our drug or radiation treatment right to the cancer and away from normal tissue, so there are less side effects and better results than normal radiation or chemotherapy. Brain cancer is a rare but devastating disease. We are hoping through conducting these autopsies to gain a better understanding of brain cancer biology.

The referring vet will need to provide a submission form for the autopsy referral and the animal’s medical history (which can be sent electronically). The referring vet will receive a free autopsy report including histopathology results, which can be shared with the owner if they desire. The animals can be sent for deep burial or private cremation as per the owner’s wishes after the examination, which will be prompt. If you have a case of a dog which has been euthanased following suspected or confirmed brain cancer and you would like to send for free autopsy examination please contact specialist anatomic pathologist Associate Professor Rachel Allavena on email r.allavena@uq.edu.au

If you are a pet owner: please discuss referral for this study with your veterinarian.

This study is approved by the University of Queensland Animal Ethics committee for production and companion animals.

Cattle with Lantana camara toxicity

We are looking for cattle that are naturally intoxicated with lantana camara. Lantana is a common toxic plant in Queensland. We are searching for prognostic indicators of intoxicated cattle to better identify cattle that will survive. If you have cattle that are showing signs of photosensitization and have access to lantana, we would like to include them in the study. Photosensitization will present as thickened or “crusty” skin that is more firm that normal. It occurs commonly in the white skinned areas, ears, nose and rear legs, but can occur anywhere on the body. Involvement in the study will consist of the cost of the campus vet mileage at $1.81/km roundtrip and the cost of the pharmaceuticals needed to treat. Blood, urine physical examination data, and pictures will be collected from the diseased animal and a healthy individual from the same paddock. Standard therapy will be activated charcoal by mouth and oxytetracycline injectable. The examination, pharmaceutical administration, and veterinary advice will be free. We are searching for prognostic indicators of intoxicated cattle to better identify cattle that will survive.

Please contact Dr Brandon Fraser for more details.

Do you have a cat with diabetes or a diabetic cat in remission?

We are looking for diabetic cats and diabetic cats in remission for three clinical trials that will investigate new treatments and monitoring for this condition. Two studies will investigate the role of a long-acting synthetic drug, exenatide (Bydureon®). The third study will investigate a new generation of glucose monitors that provide immediate glucose values by waving a reader device over a sensor – without needle or sample collection required. There will be no cost to owners for any diagnostics, study drugs, or monitoring, however, study participants will need to be brought to UQ’s Gatton campus.

Study into the pathologic features of bladder disease in dogs and cats

Cystitis and urinary tract infections (UTIs) are a common cause of discomfort and inappropriate elimination in dogs and cats worldwide. Some animals are in so much discomfort that they are euthanased. Further, the translational potential of dog and cat bladder disease to the painful human condition of interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome is understudied. To further explore the pathophysiology of these conditions we are asking to be contacted by veterinary surgeons who have seen dog or cat patients with histories of, or who are suffering from, bladder disease. Owners of these patients can also contact the research group and we will work with your veterinary surgeon.

We would like to obtain access to medical histories, urine, bladder wall biopsy tissue (endoscopic, laparoscopic) from animals with bladder disease who are having these tests done by their vets. In the case of animals (dogs, cats) that have been euthanased for, or with a history of bladder disease, we would like the opportunity to perform an autopsy. Referring veterinarians will receive free pathology reports. This study is approved by the University of Queensland Animal Ethics Committee.

Referring veterinarians with potential cases can contact lead research student Emily Jones on emily.jones@uq.edu.au to discuss the trial.

Thank you in advance for your collaboration in broadening the veterinary medical knowledge.

Online survey! Do you have a dog that is obsessed with cane toads?

Do you own a dog and want to help us understand cane toad intoxications and how to stop them? Then read on!

Cane toad intoxication in dogs causes significant stress and vet costs for owners. Mouthing of cane toads causes salivation, vomiting, tremors, and seizures, and even the death of some pets. We are interested in finding out what causes dogs to attack cane toads and how to decrease such attacks, and you can help!

We are currently recruiting for owners of healthy, young to middle-aged dogs who have a history of attacking or mouthing cane toads that have required a trip to the vet or first aid. You will be asked to complete a short 10-15 minutes online survey about their dog's general health and his or her history with cane toads.

Please click on the following link to participate: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf6VxHerKVSwSpudzVFi2yPgCq0hlWTTyuvr_zui8cXATO3mA/viewform

This trial is being run by Drs Rachel Allavena and Jonathon Cochrane and has been approved by the UQ Animal and Human Research Ethics Committees (AEC approval #101/17 and HREC approval #2017000926). If you have any questions please contact Dr Allavena at <r.allavena@uq.edu.au>.

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