UPMC Clinical Center for the Study of Chronic Pancreatitis and Diabetes. The UPMC Clinical Center for the Study of Chronic Pancreatitis and Diabetes constitutes a multidisciplinary clinical-translational program at the University of Pittsburgh and its affiliated medical system (UPMC). Our site has been one of the 10 founding members of the Consortium for the Study of Chronic Pancreatitis, Diabetes, and Pancreatic Cancer. The organizational structure of the UPMC clinical center supports comprehensive epidemiological, clinical, and biological characterization of patients with pancreatic disorders to conduct clinical, translational, and mechanistic studies of recurrent acute pancreatitis (RAP) and chronic pancreatitis (CP) and their sequelae, such as diabetes mellitus. 

 

The center is highly integrated into all levels of the consortium, including leadership, participation in Committees and Working Groups, contribution to primary cohorts, several ancillary studies, and publications. During the last 10 years, our center has been effective in utilizing the consortium’s infrastructure and resources for high-quality scientific projects. In the next five years of funding, our center will remain committed to completing ascertainment of the primary cohorts, executing the currently approved ancillary studies, and participating in new projects. We will also propose concepts for three new ancillary studies that will utilize the infrastructure and resources of the upcoming consortium’s funding cycle. 

 

Our specific aims are: 

1. First Aim: Continue participation in the recruitment and retention for PROCEED and other ancillary studies. 

2. Second Aim: We will propose and support new ancillary projects to use the infrastructure created through PROCEED and ongoing ancillary studies. As part of Aim 2, we propose concepts for three ancillary projects: #1) Develop novel biomarkers for early diagnosis of CP fibrosis. #2) Define dynamic changes in pain-related patient-reported outcomes and correlate these with urine and plasma proteins. #3) Determine the prevalence and risk factors of diabetes complications in patients with pancreatitis. 

 

Our well-established clinical and research infrastructure for recruitment and retention, sample processing, data management, and analysis will support the program. The rich clinical volume, diverse investigator expertise in all critical areas such as pancreatology, endocrinology, epidemiology, genetics, physiology, imaging, biostatistics/informatics, and administrative authority in clinical and research areas ensure continued success. Our record of leadership, collaborations, and working relationships in the consortium and other networks will also ensure the continued success of the collaborative effort of this consortium in this next phase.
 

Public Health Relevance Statement
The UPMC Clinical Center for the Study of Chronic Pancreatitis and Diabetes is a clinical-translational program at the University of Pittsburgh and its affiliated medical center (UPMC) that has been designed to conduct research studies in chronic pancreatitis and its sequelae, such as diabetes, which are relevant to public health. As a member of the proposed Chronic Pancreatitis Clinical Research Consortium, our center will participate in collaborative studies planned by the consortium. The track record of accomplishments of our center over the last 10 years of the consortium, as well as leadership and contributions to other collaborative networks, will ensure continued success and effectiveness of the Chronic Pancreatitis Clinical Research Consortium.