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KidneyLink: Connecting Canadians to Kidney Research

Whether you are a patient, care partner, donor, or family member, you can make valuable contributions to research. Your skills and experience will help researchers understand what is most important to those with lived experience and develop better studies. That’s why The Kidney Foundation of Canada and the Can-SOLVE CKD Network have partnered to create KidneyLink, a national platform where you can learn about and connect to kidney research taking place across Canada. KidneyLink is your connection to kidney research teams across Canada looking to work with people like you. From a user-friendly portal, you can search for opportunities to get involved, learn about new research findings, and access research training and resources.

Apply by

Virtual
TREAT-COVID: addressing critical issues and TheRapeutics Emerging in TrAnsplantaTion in COVID-19

The pandemic continues to be hard for many transplant recipients and their families and caregivers. COVID-19 vaccines are less effective for transplant recipients. This is due to their suppressed immune systems. As a result, transplant recipients who get COVID-19 are at a higher risk of hospitalization and death. Preventing severe disease in transplant recipients requires different strategies. A New Study The CDTRP’s COVID-19 research is centered on addressing patient, family, and caregiver priorities. We have engaged the transplant community to learn how research and policy can support the recovery of quality of life during COVID-19 and in future health concerns. We are currently recruiting from 10 out of the 11 sites, see details below:   Alberta – University of Alberta, Stollery Children’s Hospital Québec – Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Quebec (CHUQ), Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Montréal (CHUM), Montreal Children’s Hospital and Institut de Cardiologie de Montréal (ICM) Ontario – London Health Sciences Center, UHN British Columbia – BC Children’s Hospital, Vancouver General Hospital  Recruitment from the final site will begin soon. Learn more here: https://cdtrp.ca/en/treatcovid/ Enroll here: https://omc.ohri.ca/TREATCovid/Default.aspx 

Apply by 2025-06-30

Virtual
Towards integration of sex and sex hormones into transplantation precision medicine.

Men and women differ in how their immune systems work, how diseases progress, and how treatments perform. But despite being highly relevant for overall health, sex- and gender-related information (e.g., data on puberty, meno-, and andropause, menstrual cycle, fertility, and hormone levels) are only rarely considered when preparing treatment plans or predicting transplant outcomes for kidney failure patients. This project aims to better understand how sex hormones such as estrogen and testosterone levels, influence recovery and long-term success after receiving a kidney transplant. In blood samples collected from male and female kidney transplant recipients of different age groups, we will for the first time: Measure sex hormones and combine this information with existing clinical, genetic, and immune system data using advanced statistical and computational modeling. By analyzing how hormone and immune patterns relate to post transplant health, this study hopes to reveal why individuals sometimes respond differently to treatment. Ultimately, this knowledge could lead to more personalized and equitable care, informing treatment strategies that adjust hormone and immune function on an individual basis to improve patient survival and quality of life.

Apply by 2026-03-08

Virtual
This opportunity is now closed

Inspiratory Muscle Training in Lung Transplant Candidates and Implications on Early Post-Transplant Outcomes: A Pilot and Feasibility Randomized Clinical Trial

Recovery after lung transplantation may be challenging after a long stay in the intensive care unit or hospital after surgery. The structure and function of the diaphragm (most important breathing muscle) is very important for good recovery after surgery. Training this muscle before surgery may provide "extra reserve" to cope with the stresses after surgery. Rehabilitation guidelines suggest that inspiratory muscle training (IMT) combined with standard whole-body exercises prior to major surgery can reduce post-operative complications and expedite recovery. In major thoracic surgery or organ transplantation, the mechanisms and clinical benefits of IMT have not been well established. The lung transplant population represents a unique group to study the benefits of pre-operative IMT. We propose to study 100 lung transplant patients awaiting surgery who will be randomized to receive either: 1) IMT and standard rehabilitation or 2) standard rehabilitation alone across 4 centers in Canada. Participants in group 1 will use a well-established respiratory muscle training device to train twice daily until transplantation. All participants will undergo standard rehabilitation until the time of surgery and 3-months post-transplant. In a subset of the 100 patients, muscle biopsies of the diaphragm will be performed in the Toronto program at the time of surgery. This study will determine if the research design is feasible. Secondary measures will evaluate breathlessness, quality of life, diaphragm function and cellular characteristics, and clinical outcomes 3-months post-transplant. This study will provide a unique opportunity to understand whether IMT is feasible across 4 transplant centers and get an assessment of post-operative outcomes and mechanisms underlying IMT. This study may serve as a model for examining IMT as part of pre-operative rehabilitation in a number of patient populations undergoing major surgery.

Apply by 2023-03-08

Virtual
This opportunity is now closed

EMPOWER: A 12-week online wellness program for people 50+ who have received an organ transplant

EMPOWER is a 12-week online mind-body wellness program for people who are 50+ and have received an organ transplant. The program will be delivered online, and include follow-along mindful movement, breathwork and meditation routines, and a psychology-based coping skills program. Participants may be assigned to start right away or in 3 months' time. As part of the research process, they may also receive weekly brief check-ins from the study team. Participants are asked to complete a minimum of 90-12o minutes on program content each week.

Apply by 2025-05-19

Virtual
This opportunity is now closed

Outcomes of organs transplanted after Medical Assistance in Dying in the province of Québec

Since the initial development of the program in 2017, donation after Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) has grown substantially in Québec. Today almost 15% of all donors in Québec come from this pathway and 182 organs were transplanted from 64 donors between 2018 and 2022. However, while transplant programs informally report that recipients of these organs have had favorable outcomes, very little scientific data has been published on the topic. Our project aims to evaluate how the patients who received these kidneys, livers, and lungs are doing after the transplant using standardized outcome definitions. We will compare to patients who received organs from traditional donation pathways such as after brain death or living donation. This will provide important knowledge that can be used to: encourage programs to develop or improve their donation after MAID programs; give patients who are considering donation after MAID more information about the impact their gift could make; serve as a pilot project for a Canada wide program that would evaluate similar questions.

Apply by 2023-04-03

Virtual
This opportunity is now closed

CARP COVID-19 Survey

In this survey, CARP is asking about your current perception of COVID-19. They are seeking greater insight into how immune-compromised people are navigating this 'new normal' way of life during the pandemic.

Apply by 2023-04-12

Virtual
This opportunity is now closed

Canadian Society of Transplantation - Abstract Reviewer for Annual Conference

The Canadian Society of Transplantation (CST) hosts an annual conference, which will take place in Oct 2023. Researchers and clinicians submit summaries of their research (scientific abstracts and lay/plain language summaries) which are reviewed by their peers from the scientific committee, and also by patient-family-donor partners to determine their suitability for teh conference. Top rated abstracts are also selected for awards, with 2 awards for the best lay/plain language summaries, selected by PFD partners.

Apply by 2023-05-15

Virtual
This opportunity is now closed

PROBE Pilot RCT

Kidney transplant rejection remains a major issue for children after kidney transplantation. Please note that rejection episodes are the primary contributor to premature kidney graft failure. Current clinical monitoring with blood tests like serum creatinine is ineffective in identifying early rejection. We have developed and validated a urine test called CXCL10 that effectively identifies inflammation within the transplant and is an early sign acute rejection. This clinical trial will evaluate how regular screening of CXCL10 can improve long-term graft function by effectively identifying and treating episodes of graft inflammation at an early stage before there is any detectable clinical impact from kidney damage. This study will randomize children who are more than six months after their kidney transplant to either receive the intervention of serial monitoring by urinary CXCL10 or will have samples collected as part of a control group. They will be followed for two years, two ascertain changes in kidney function in that time. The group that is assigned to do serial monitoring will have additional testing if the CXCL10 level is high and will receive treatment based on the additional testing which includes diagnosis of rejection. This 1st stage of the trial is to conduct a pilot study that will demonstrate the feasibility of the larger, definitive clinical trial. The goals will be to the establish that 1) we can meet a target to enroll and randomize an initial 60 patients from 3 centers to the study; 2) we can execute the logistical aspects of the trial including obtaining samples on time, CXCL10 testing and reporting, and application of the clinical protocol for positive CXCL10 tests; and 3) to determine the most economical approach for testing in the definitive trial. The findings of this trial will be used to support a subsequent application for a larger, definitive, multicenter clinical trial.

Apply by 2023-10-30

Virtual
This opportunity is now closed

Experiencing graft failure and exploring re-transplantation: a patient perspective

Kidney transplantation can significantly improve the lives of patients with kidney disease. But the life span of a transplanted kidney is limited, and many patients experience graft failure. Patients with graft failure do extremely poorly. They experience a life-altering event for which they are often poorly prepared and poorly supported. Many are not re-transplant candidates and some die after experiencing graft failure. It is known that patients with graft failure experience fragmented transitions of care between the transplant and dialysis teams. Patient perspectives are poorly researched and poorly understood, thus poorly translated into clinical practice. This research project aims to obtain the perspectives of patients and their caregivers who are in different stages of graft failure. We want to describe the unique experiences and needs of patients as they transition to dialysis, re-transplantation or palliative care. We also want to identify factors that can improve the care, outcomes, and well-being of these patients and what patients think impedes their access to re-transplantation. We will use well-established qualitative methods that are largely unexplored in the field of kidney transplantation. Our team includes nationally recognized transplant clinicians, researchers, and leaders.

Apply by 2023-05-23

Virtual

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