This is an application for renewal of the Clinical Center designation from the Cedars-Sinai Center for the Chronic Pancreatitis Clinical Research Consortium. The Cedars-Sinai Clinical Center has provided considerable leadership in the organization and progress of the Consortium for the Study of Chronic Pancreatitis, Diabetes, and Pancreatic Cancer (CPDPC), the former name of the Consortium. Dr. Pandol co-chairs the Steering Committee and Ancillary and Associated Studies Committee, while Dr. Goodarzi co-chairs the T3cDM Working Group and, as chair of the Genetics Committee, leads the Consortium’s initiatives to define the genetic risks of pancreatitis and T3cDM. 

 

We have successfully addressed challenges in recruitment and retention of subjects in the cohort studies to significantly improve our performance, as described in this application. Moreover, we have completed or are performing several ancillary studies, including epidemiologic and genetic studies defining the natural history and risk factors for the pancreatic disorders; biomarkers for early diagnosis; and treatment trials based on our mechanistic research of disease mechanisms. 

 

For the next phase of the Consortium, we are committed to the following Specific Aims: 

1. First Aim: Continue recruitment and retention of subjects in CPCRC cohort studies (PROCEED, INSPPIRE 2).

2. Second Aim: Continue currently supported ancillary and associated studies elucidating the pathophysiology and testing treatments for pancreatic diseases.

3. Third Aim: Continue a series of studies that combine clinical features with genetic susceptibility to allow for the prediction of future development of diabetes in patients with chronic pancreatitis.

4. Fourth Aim: Determine the role of pancreatic enzyme replacement in improving glucose homeostasis in patients with chronic pancreatitis and diabetes, with or without pancreatic exocrine pancreatic insufficiency.

5. Fifth Aim: Develop novel approaches for treatment and symptom management for patients suffering from non-malignant pancreatic diseases.

 

We will carry out the aims with a leading interdisciplinary team committed to collaborative research with other Centers and the Data Coordinating Center (DCC) of the Consortium to continue to address and resolve the outstanding gaps in the field.

 

Public Health Relevance Statement

This is an application from the Cedars-Sinai Center for the Chronic Pancreatitis Clinical Research Consortium. The Cedars-Sinai Center will contribute to the overall goals of the Consortium to elucidate the pathogenic basis of clinical outcomes progression; and (b) to develop new means of diagnosis, treatment, and clinical management of chronic pancreatitis and its complications, including chronic pain, pancreatic insufficiency, and pancreatogenic diabetes (type 3c diabetes mellitus, T3cDM), and to understand their pathogenic interrelationships.