Queen Mary University of London Wins 2014 Terumo BCT Plasma Exchange Innovation Award

Terumo BCT is pleased to announce that Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) has been named the recipient of the 2014 Plasma Exchange Innovation Award. The award is part of a program that supports one or more grants up to $100,000 to fund innovative science and research that will generate novel therapeutic plasma exchange practices.

The lead investigator is Rino Cerio, BSc, MBBS, FRCP (Edin.), FRCP (Lon.) FRCPath. He is Professor of Dermatopathology and senior consultant dermatologist at QMUL and Clinical and Academic Director of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery at Barts Health NHS Trust, London, UK.

KEY FACTS:

• The Plasma Exchange Innovation Award is intended to encourage the investigation of novel scientific ideas, best practices, tools and standards for the advancement of plasma exchange therapy
• All decisions on funding are made by the Terumo BCT Grant Committee, which comprises of expert independent reviewers
• QMUL will receive $100,000 to fund a research proposal from lead investigator Professor Cerio and co-investigator Louise Fuller, Specialist Registrar Dermatology, Barts Health NHS Trust & Broomfield Hospital
• The name of the research proposal is “A pilot study to investigate clinical efficacy, safety, and immunologic effects after therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) in adults with severe psoriasis who fail on systemic medication including biologics and severe recalcitrant atopic dermatitis”
• The study will investigate the use of TPE in adults in both severe psoriasis (who have failed systemic treatment) and severe atopic dermatitis, and the study aims to establish the clinical and serological response to TPE in these patients

KEY QUOTES:

Najib Khalife, Medical Affairs & Therapy Awareness Manager, Terumo BCT

“Apheresis is a powerful therapy that has a lot of untapped potential. The Terumo BCT 2014 Plasma Exchange Innovation Award is an effort to spark new developments that can lead to new practices in apheresis for patients. Queen Mary University of London’s forward-thinking project is a great selection for this year’s award, and I’m excited to see what the outcomes of this work will be.”

Professor Rino Cerio, Professor of Dermatopathology and senior consultant dermatologist at QMUL and Director of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery at Barts Health NHS Trust

“Therapeutic plasma exchange has the potential to be safer than targeted biologics in treating severe atopy and psoriasis. My colleagues and I are delighted to receive this award to advance our clinical studies for patients with these conditions attending our tertiary referral centre. The grant will help us better understand the immunopathogenisis of both conditions and improve our patients’ quality of life cost-effectively and safely.”

KEY RESOURCES:

• Plasma Exchange Innovation Award handout
• Rino Cerio Biography
• Louise Fuller Biography
• PlasmaExchangeGrant.com

About Terumo BCT:

Terumo BCT, a global leader in blood component, therapeutic apheresis and cellular technologies, is the only company with the unique combination of apheresis collections, manual and automated whole blood processing, and pathogen reduction coupled with leading technologies in therapeutic apheresis and cell processing. We believe in the potential of blood to do even more for patients than it does today. This belief inspires our innovation and strengthens our collaboration with customers.

About Queen Mary University of London (QMUL)

Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) is one of the UK’s leading universities, and one of the largest institutions in the University of London, with 20,260 students from more than 150 countries.

A member of the Russell Group, we work across the humanities and social sciences, medicine and dentistry, and science and engineering, with inspirational teaching directly informed by our research - in the most recent national assessment of the quality of research, we were placed ninth in the UK (REF 2014).

We also offer something no other university can: a stunning self-contained residential campus in London’s East End. As well as our home at Mile End, we have campuses at Whitechapel, Charterhouse Square and West Smithfield dedicated to the study of medicine, and a base for legal studies at Lincoln’s Inn Fields.

We have a rich history in London with roots in Europe’s first public hospital, St Barts; England’s first medical school, The London; one of the first colleges to provide higher education to women, Westfield College; and the Victorian philanthropic project, the People’s Palace based at Mile End.

QMUL has an annual turnover of £350m, a research income worth £100m, and generates employment and output worth £700m to the UK economy each year.

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Contact information

Terumo BCT
D.J. Martin, +1-303-239-2060
Global Corporate Communications
press@terumobct.com