There are about 72 clinical studies being (or have been) conducted in Jamaica. The country of the clinical trial is determined by the location of where the clinical research is being studied. Most studies are often held in multiple locations & countries.
Doctors of the University of West Indies, the Caribbean Epidemiology Center (CAREC) and the National Cancer Institute have been studying the epidemiology of HTLV-I and its role in the etiology and pathogenesis of adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ALT), and aggressive T-cell lymphoma. The purpose of the current study is to evaluate familial and genetic aspects of ATL and its relationship to two other HTLV-I related conditions, HTLV-I associated myelopathy also known as tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP), and infective dermatitis. Enrollment of infective dermatitis cases was recently added and the disease entity is thought to be a harbinger for later development of either ATL or HAM/TSP. The purpose of this study is to interview patients with these conditions and perform laboratory studies (specifically, HLA and other viral or genetic studies) to better understand these diseases and their relationship to the HTLV-1 virus and the family history and genetic factors that may be involved as well.
Human T-lymphotrophic virus type I (HTLV-I) is endemic in southern Japan and the Caribbean, but disease manifestations differ across geographic regions. Though age, gender, and route of infection may determine the natural history of this infection, the observed geographic differences also may, in part, reflect the distinct genetic background of the host as evidenced by the distribution of human leukocyte antigens (HLA) and the presence of other environmental factors. Studies already completed or ongoing have shown notable differences in incidence and prevalence of HTLV-I associated diseases and underscore the need for comparative studies and analyses in these areas. This prospective new study of blood donors in Jamaica provides us with an opportunity to address many hypotheses regarding HTLV-I transmission and pathogenesis in the Caribbean in comparison with an ongoing cohort study of HTLV-I carriers in Japan. This study will - identify host factors associated with HTLV-I carrier status and HTLV-I pathogenesis. - directly calculate the incidence of HTLV-I associated diseases in this population. - examine the role of HTLV-I in the pathogenesis of other common infectious agents. Approximately 5,000+ blood donors who came to the National Blood Transfusion each year will be screened for HTLV-I serology. Of those who agreed to participate, all HTLV-I carriers and age-, and sex-matched HTLV-I-negatives will be invited to the University of the West Indies clinic for a full study enrollment. Study participants will be given a standardized questionnaire, a full physical examination, and a phlebotomy (25-30 mL), and will be followed every other year for interim health status and additional phlebotomy. All subjects will receive an ophthalmologic examination for detection of uveitis and other ocular diseases. Some subjects will be further referred to a neurologist, hematologist or dermatologist, according to their signs and symptoms. Approximately 1200 HTLV-I carriers and 600 HTLV-I negatives will be recruited for a longitudinal follow-up over the next 5-year period. Two types of analyses will be conducted: comparison of HTLV-I-positive and HTLV-I-negative subjects, and comparison among HTLV carriers between those with a high level of viral load and those with a low level.
This study will identify chemical and protein markers in the blood of people who carry the human T-lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I), a virus associated with various pathologies, including an increased risk in adults of a rare and aggressive cancer called adult T cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATL). The study will also examine differences in these markers before and after the onset of ATL. ATL has been reported in every area where HTLV-1 is common, including the Caribbean and parts of Japan, West Africa, the Middle East, South America, and Pacific Melanesia. Risk factors for the disease are largely unknown and seem to vary among those affected in different endemic regions. People who acquire the infection early in life are thought to be at higher risk than those who are infected later. In Japan, men seem to be at greater risk than women, but the same is not evident among the black population in the Caribbean and Brazil. Findings from this study will increase understanding of the cause of ATL and identify differences in tumor characteristics and the course of disease across geographical areas. Study subjects are drawn from among participants in eight studies of HTLV-1 carriers, including the 1) Jamaica Mother-Infant Cohort Study, 2) Jamaica Family Study, 3) Jamaica Food Handlers Study, 4) Miyazaki Cohort Study in Japan, 5) Nagasaki Cohort Study in Japan, 6) Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Study on Cancer and Cardiovascular Disease, 7) HTLV Outcome Studies in the United States, and 8) GIPH Cohort Study in Brazil. Stored blood samples previously collected from patients in the above studies who did and did not develop ATL will be analyzed for immunologic and genetic factors.
The purpose of the study is to determine the safety of and immune response to a DNA HIV vaccine followed by an adenoviral vector HIV vaccine in HIV uninfected adults.
It is believed that the organs of severely malnourished children malfunction because harmful compounds called oxidants injure the tissues in these organs. In a healthy person oxidants are made harmless because another compound called glutathione neutralizes them. Glutathione is made from three amino acids that we get from the protein we eat in our food. We found that malnourished children were not making enough glutathione because they lacked one of these amino acids called cysteine. In this study we determine why malnourished children do not have sufficient cysteine, and we will feed malnourished children a whey-based diet which is rich in cysteine during their treatment to determine whether they will make more glutathione. This in turn may make their organs recover faster. These findings will let us know whether malnourished children can recover faster if they are given more cysteine during the early phase of treatment.
This study will gather and compare data about the effectiveness and safety of two different treatments for extensive Small Cell Lung Cancer (SCLC) in patients who have not received previous chemotherapy. One treatment will use an investigational drug in combination with an FDA approved chemotherapy. The other treatment will use a combination of two FDA approved chemotherapy drugs.