Dr. Irving Kent Law
It seems like a golden age for all of us who follow the news about new drugs being developed to treat diseases that afflict many of us. True, the cost of these drugs can be dizzying, but at least once developed and validated, they will eventually become generic drugs, making them more affordable and therefore curable. I know it will be more readily available for symptoms that don't exist.
While some of these symptoms may be obvious, such as the prevalence of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and being overweight, many of the symptoms, such as high blood pressure, advanced kidney disease, and abnormal blood fats, lurk in the background until symptoms become apparent. , is silent. Too much damage has already been done unless we are proactive and take steps to reduce its impact.
Forty years ago, when the Ventura Heart Institute was first proposed to the hospital where I worked, the guiding principle was prevention and the action was education and clinical research. VHI is a theme focused on the prevention of cardiovascular diseases through lifestyle and pharmacological means based on cutting-edge knowledge, aimed at both the general public and clinicians in the form of public screening programs in hospitals and continuing medical education. We implemented an educational program targeting at that time. And closely related to that cutting-edge knowledge is clinical research, which has been an integral part of my professional life, starting with my research training at the National Institutes of Health and then at Cedars-Sinai University. This continued during my time as a cardiologist. before coming to Ventura County as a cardiovascular disease management practitioner.
Although the situation has changed over the decades, with the Ventura Heart Institute no longer located within a hospital and educational opportunities for the public and medical professionals becoming more limited without hospital support, research activities remain It remained. After a brief hiatus, clinical research has once again become an important focus of my professional life, providing much larger goals and areas of interest beyond cardiovascular disease.
With support from global clinical research company Care Access, we have just built a purpose-built research facility on the campus of Los Robles Hospital, although we have no formal relationship with the hospital itself. That said, the Heart and Vascular Institute at Los Robles Regional Medical Center conducts device research, Care Access conducts clinical research for new drugs, and together we are working to bring new treatments to the community and beyond. We are intensifying our efforts in symbiosis research to bring about options.
Previous research efforts have had difficulty engaging underrepresented patient populations in these programs to develop new treatments. This is even more important because many of these hot conditions can disproportionately impact those patient groups, making it difficult to accurately determine the impact of these new treatments on the patients who are likely to benefit most. characterizing it may miss the point. The answer is to make it easier for underserved populations to participate in these clinical programs, but the dilemma is how to do that efficiently. The goal is to involve all eligible patients so that the clinical data applies to all of us, not just those who are able to participate in clinical trials.
More innovative models can help reach patients who might not otherwise participate in clinical research. Patients go to a doctor they trust. And even if those physicians have prior clinical research experience, they may not currently be in a position to refer patients or participate in these programs themselves. And none of them, certainly not in this medical environment, builds more space, buys more specialized equipment, or hires more staff than necessary.
Care Access partners with health care providers and community organizations to provide expertise, staff, and equipment. We're setting up on-site community screening events to help you conduct your research wherever you need it, from travel trailers to tents.
Care Access has embarked on a one-year (or more) no-cost, no-obligation project to test as many as 200,000 people across the country, including traditionally underrepresented populations. The goal is to look for patients who do not have symptoms but may have underlying risk factors that, if present, could lead to severe disease if not recognized early. These tests include testing for her Lp(a), a blood fat that is six times more dangerous than so-called bad cholesterol, LDL-C, as well as diabetes risk and kidney disease. We pass the results on to the patient, and if the patient wishes, to their doctor, so that they can address those issues now, hopefully before it's too late in the disease process.
Why do we do this? We consider the conditions of potential greatest interest in the field of cardiovascular and metabolic disease, and if we can proactively identify patients at risk, we can first make patients and their physicians aware. We decided that we could help the patient by giving him. We can now intervene sooner, but secondly, we can help match patients to clinical trials that can lead to the development of medicines that will benefit patients and future generations.
That's why we reach out to hospitals, clinics, and large healthcare organizations to offer free screening for these high-risk cardiometabolic risk factors. In fact, there is a subsidy for those who participate in the screening and there is no obligation to participate in the clinical program even if found eligible. In many cases, awareness of the potential risks to family members may lead enough people to want to help determine whether a new treatment might help them or their family in the future. we are thinking.
If you are interested in getting tested, I have and will continue to contact local hospitals, clinics, and clinics. If they agree to participate (at no cost), the date and time will be communicated to the patient through internal channels. We hope to have some joint screening events at their facilities this year. Our first efforts will be in cardiovascular and metabolic areas, so while Heart Month begins this month, CareAccess plans to implement these throughout the year at many of our facilities across the country. Additionally, early markers of cognitive decline, such as Alzheimer's disease, are on the roadmap for future screening.
If you would like to participate in person, please visit our new Care Access research office in Thousand Oaks and we will accommodate you. However, you must visit MyFreeHeartTest.com/DrLoh to schedule it. Then, schedule your test.
Dr. Irving Kent Roe is a preventive cardiologist and director of the Ventura Heart Institute in Thousand Oaks. Email drloh@venturaheart.com.
