Establishing a Registry and Bio-resource for Vitiligo Patients
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Establishing a Registry and Bio-resource for Vitiligo Patients
IRAS ID
256549
Contact name
John Stewart Ferguson
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
R&D Office, Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
9 years, 11 months, 30 days
Research summary
The Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Trust Vitiligo Service has been running since 2018. There are currently no other specialist Vitiligo services in the UK. We offer a range of treatments including topical therapies (potent steroid ointments and non-steroidal ointments called calcineurin inhibitors), Phototherapy as well as depigmentation therapy. We perform surgical treatments including skin transplants. We have a clinical psychologist who works in clinic offering support to patients and study the impact of the disease on their lives and the value of psychological interventions.
Part A of this project aims to establish a registry and database of detailed clinical, psychological, and laboratory, data taken from consenting patients with vitiligo. Part B of the project aims to gather biological material (from patients over 16 years of age) for future proteomic and genetic analysis.
This will improve our understanding of the clinical presentations of vitiligo, the impact on our patients and the factors that predict treatment outcomes. There will be long-term follow-up of patients with detailed documentation of disease progression, psychological morbidity, skin cancer incidence and treatment effectiveness.
At present treatment options for patients with vitiligo are limited. However, new treatments are becoming available for vitiligo patients. It is hoped that this cohort of patients will provide a resource to future studies and if they consent, they may be approached to take part in future interventional trials.
Because vitiligo seems to be protective against skin cancer, clinical and laboratory data taken from vitiligo patients may be useful in the understanding and treatment of skin cancer. Patient data and tissue samples may be used to this end.
Information from this study may lead to potential novel therapeutic approaches for vitiligo, melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancer.
REC name
London - South East Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
19/LO/1936
Date of REC Opinion
5 Feb 2020
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion