Cardiff and Vale University Health Board research shortlisted for Nursing Times Award 2024

Today (20th September 2024) is Red4Research Day 2024, a day dedicated to everyone partaking, undertaking and supporting research. Research is pivotal to help us learn more about health and wellbeing and provide new treatments, vaccines, diagnosis and care to improve quality of life at present and for generations to come.

One study that took place at Cardiff and Vale University Health Board was the nurse-led CART QUOL study – focusing on the quality of life of patients undergoing CAR-T cell therapy. Research suggests that a patient’s quality of life is negatively impacted whilst receiving CART-T cell therapy and research nurse manager and Chief investigator Emma Williams led her own study from University Hospital of Wales, the only site in the country to have done such a study during Covid 19 and to have been published.

Participants recruited to this study were diagnosed with Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma and were eligible for CAR-T cell therapy. This is an intense and specialised immunotherapy treatment which attacks cancer cells. CAR-T cell therapy can be very challenging physically and emotionally for patients as well as having to spend long periods of time in hospital and away from their loved ones.

In addition to a number of nursing recommendations set out within this study , the CART QUOL study has been nominated for a Nursing Times Award 2024 in the Clinical Research Nursing category along with the development of the nurse led portfolio and training of nurse Principal Investigators. Emma and the team will be attending the award ceremony in October.

Another nurse led study, led by Emma Williams and her research nurses is the PROPEL study. This explores patient’s quality of life, emotional well-being, and nutritional status for patients diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia.

Participants are randomised to a standard package of care that would usually be given at site versus a personalised package of care tailored to the individual, this includes mental health support as well as a bespoke physical exercise routine. The research team are investigating if the additional support arm helps patients recover from treatment quicker, thus spending less time in hospital. Two participants have been recruited at University Hospital Wales so far and the team hope to see more recruits until the study closes in 2025.

Proud of the work she and her team carry out, Emma said;

“Nurse led research is crucial as it adds depth and breadth to the research portfolio. Patients tend to ask nurses very different questions to those discussed with the Clinician. By having a portfolio of nurse led studies enables these differences in perspectives to be voiced. Values based health care supports the ongoing commissioning of new drugs and agents and can provide vital information around the impact of disease and treatments, it may also provide a prediction of who will be likely to benefit most from treatments (Fallowfield 2002).”

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