Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust is the second-biggest provider of in-patient hospital care for children in the UK, with the largest neonatal unit in the country. Offering children and young people the opportunity to participate in high quality clinical trials is a recognised as a vital part of delivering excellent clinical care at Leeds Children’s Hospital. We deliver an expanding comprehensive portfolio of clinical studies to support our aim to be a national leader in paediatric clinical research.
Broad portfolio
The Leeds Children’s Hospital treats a comprehensive range of illnesses, from antenatal conditions through to adult variants of childhood diseases. This wide-ranging portfolio is supported by a vibrant research culture, with particular strengths including:
- Cardiovascular disease
- Cystic fibrosis
- Diabetes
- Haematology
- Neonatology
- Neurology and Neuromuscular disease
- Oncology
- Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal disorders
Clinical Trials
Our trials include paediatric and neonatal studies, with recent high-profile research programmes including a trial of an ‘artificial pancreas’ – a computerised pump that can monitor and control blood insulin levels. This was carried out in collaboration with Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, and University College London Hospitals. Leeds is also a longstanding leader in the management of childhood leukaemia trials, looking at, for example, stratification of treatment for different patients.
Industry and Specialist Research Network partners
We have highly productive partnerships with specialised industrial partners, including Vertex Pharmaceuticals and Gilead Sciences. Leeds has been designated as a “Clinical Trial Accelerator Platform” site by the UK Cystic Fibrosis Trust, who are generously supporting our ability to increase participation and opportunities for children and adults with cystic fibrosis to participate in new ground-breaking studies including disease-modifying CFTR modulator studies. Our oncology trials are supported by the Experimental Cancer Medicine Network (ECMC) and receive funding from Cancer Research UK.