Chronic inflammation of the skin, or Hidradenitis Suppurativa (HS), disproportionately affects women and people of color. It starts in adolescence and can be debilitating, negatively impacting suffers’ quality of life, physical function, work productivity, and the social and emotional wellbeing. Unfortunately, it is also poorly understood and understudied both clinically and biologically, although it impacts 1% of Western populations.
To support HS research and treatment options, UC San Francisco is leading “HS PROGRESS,” a multicenter, longitudinal study that aims to comprehensively characterize HS from clinical and biological perspectives. HS PROGRESS (Hidradenitis Suppurativa Prospective Observational Registry and bioSpecimen repoSitory) will establish a cohort of HS patients to better understand the disease, evaluate current treatment strategies and develop new treatments.
At present, there are few effective treatments for HS patients. There is only one FDA-approved treatment, but its effectiveness is hampered by lack of data about the typical HS disease course, patient characteristics associated with treatment response, and specific comorbidities like diabetes and obesity. In addition, many primary care physicians and other providers are not familiar with the condition.
Accelerate therapeutic development and improve patient lives
The researchers will collect biospecimens from HS patients for translational studies to drive drug development and establish a group of consented patients who can be recruited to future clinical studies.
HS PROGRESS is designed to facilitate HS research through collaboration between investigators, clinicians, patients and industry in order to improve the lives of people living with HS. The multi-institutional collaborative consortium brings together research infrastructures and clinical registries, accelerating HS research to improve the lives of patients suffering from HS.
HS PROGRESS already has twelve participating study locations including UCSF, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Mayo Clinic, Penn State, University of Virginia, Washington University in St. Louis, University of Southern California, Henry Ford Health, University of Minnesota, University of Pennsylvania, Duke University and University of Miami. Four additional study locations will be joining the consortium before the end of 2023.
About UCSF Health: UCSF Health is recognized worldwide for its innovative patient care, reflecting the latest medical knowledge, advanced technologies and pioneering research. It includes the flagship UCSF Medical Center, which is a top-ranked specialty hospital, as well as UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals, with campuses in San Francisco and Oakland, Langley Porter Psychiatric Hospital and Clinics, UCSF Benioff Children’s Physicians and the UCSF Faculty Practice. These hospitals serve as the academic medical center of the University of California, San Francisco, which is world-renowned for its graduate-level health sciences education and biomedical research. UCSF Health has affiliations with hospitals and health organizations throughout the Bay Area. Visit https://ucsfhealth.org. Follow UCSF Health on Facebook or on Twitter.
(AM/Newswise)
