Siric > Platforms > Clinical Research

Clinical research is an essential component of the therapeutic progress in cancerology. It is positioned at the interface between the world of care and that of research and helps patients to benefit from recent diagnostic and therapeutic innovations.

The clinical research activity conducted at the Montpellier Regional Cancer Institute (ICM ) and at the University Hospital of Montpellier is multidisciplinary, involving all organ pathologies and all therapeutic modalities used in cancer treatment.

The assessments focus on anticancer molecules, radiotherapy techniques, surgery, imaging, diagnosis, and on supportive care and new research strategies in human and social sciences.
Strong national recognition

Montpellier’s clinical cancer research is well developed and has been structured over the years to incorporate an ongoing commitment to quality, ethics and respect for patient rights.

• Delegations for Clinical Research and Innovation (DRCI)

The DRCIs attached to Montpellier University Hospital and ICM play a major role in the organisation and development of quality biomedical research in oncology. The diverse skills of the DRCI teams actively promote clinical research and are charged with the mission of providing information, incentives and methodological support via the hospital team.

• Clinical investigation structures in oncology

Structures specific to oncology, and agreed by the Ministry of Health and the Clinical Research Centre of ICM, offer extensive therapeutic trial capacity.

Within it, the early phase clinical trial Centre (CLIP2), as defined by the INCa in a project carried out in conjunction with Montpellier University Hospital (CHRU), constitutes a platform for conducting phase I and II clinical trials for all tumour types except for pediatrics.

• The Languedoc-Roussillon cancerology clinical research platform

The Languedoc-Roussillon cancerology clinical research platform aims to improve the visibility and quality of clinical trials conducted in the region. For health professionals, this digital, online platform aims for a wide referencing of clinical trials with improved opportunities for patient inclusion. In addition, enrolment in the platform will allow professionals to be better informed and supported in the development of new trials.

 

CLIPP (Early Clinical Trial Center)

Location ICM

Name of the Coordinator: Dr Diego TOSI

Description (expertise, activity and resources)

The Early Clinical Trial Centre of Montpellier is dedicated to the implementation of phase I and II clinical trials. It is member of the network of Centers accredited by the INCa for early clinical trials (Center Labellisé INCa de Phase Précoce, CLIP2). The clinical activity of the Centre is conducted at on two sites, the ICM (for solid cancer trials) and the Montpellier CHU (for hematological cancer trials).

In addition to the clinical research activities, the CLIP² implement preclinical research projects on two main areas:

1. The development of synergistic combinations of targeted drug based on phosphokinomics characterization of drug interaction and synergy detection. This research programme is developed at the Institut de Recherche en Cancérologie de Montpellier (IRCM) by Dr Diego Tosi and Dr Céline Gongora, and addresses several methodological and preclinical issues, with the aim to provide data backing the rationale of early clinical trials of targeted drugs combined between them, with chemotherapy or with hormonal therapy. We are now elaborating proposals of early clinical trials on the basis of the first results obtained in this programme.
2. The development of early clinical trial of target drugs combined with ionizing radiations. In the past years, the Professor Azria team, in collaboration with the Radiobiology INSERM unit at IRCM, has conducted designed and conducted several phase I/II trials of new drugs combined with ionizing radiation at the CEPP in concomitance with a preclinical research programme on combination of targeted drugs and ionizing radiation. The purpose of this preclinical programme is to investigate the action mechanisms induced by the association of therapeutic antibodies (anti_EGFR, HER2, HER3) with ionizing radiation in order to improve the radiosensitivity of the tumour cells in different pre-clinical models of cancer such as cancer of breast, pancreas, colon, rectum, anal canal, cervix and upper aero-digestive tract.