Palliative Care Research

The Concord Centre for Palliative Care is leading a program of translational research to improve outcomes for patients and is committed to providing best practice evidence-based care. This includes offering patients and families the opportunity to participate in research designed to improve care. 

Being part of local, national and international research assists us to create a dynamic service which best meets the needs of our patients. We welcome expressions of interest from patients, carers and consumers who would like to contribute to this important program of work.

We are collaborating with Australian and international researchers from the Sydney Local Health District, Palliative Care Clinical Studies Collaborative, Cancer Symptom Trials, Improving Palliative Care through Clinical Trials: NSW, University of Notre Dame, UNSW, Centre for Improving Palliative, Aged and Chronic Care through Clinical Research and Translation UTS, Palliative Care Outcomes Collaborative and Japanese Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer, Calvary Healthcare and Exercise and Sports Science Australia on a range of research investigating palliative care symptoms, service provision and equity of access. 

Currently we have clinical trials recruiting for patients with cancer and nerve pain, poor appetite and fatigue testing cannabis, lidocaine, anamorelin, pregabalin, duloxetine and testosterone and welcome enquiries about our clinical trials through your palliative care clinician.

We thank the patients and carers who have contributed to Concord Palliative Care research to improve outcomes for all patients. 

Current Clinical Trials

Concord Palliative Care Service is actively involved in several research projects.

DEPART Pain

Principal Investigator - Dr Jessica Lee 02 9767 6799

A phase III, international, multi-centre, double-blind, dose increment, parallel-arm, randomised controlled trial of duloxetine versus pregabalin over 14 days for opioid unresponsive cancer-related neuropathic pain.

Lidocaine for neuropathic cancer pain

Principal Investigator - Dr Jessica Lee 02 9767 6799

A multi-centre double-blind randomised controlled trial of subcutaneous lidocaine (lignocaine) for the management of neuropathic cancer pain - a feasibility study.

Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) for cancer-related anorexia

Principal Investigator - Dr Megan Ritchie 02 9767 6799

Phase IIb double-blind, placebo-controlled study of oral delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Namisol®) for anorexia in people with advanced cancer.

Anamorelin for Anorexia - LUANA trial

Principal Investigator - Dr Jessica Lee 02 9767 6799

Phase II, double blind, placebo controlled, parallel arm, fixed dose, multi-site study to evaluate the safety, feasibility and desirability of conducting a fully powered phase III study of anamorelin for anorexia in people with small cell lung cancer.

For more information on any of these studies, please contact Dr Jessica Lee on 02 9767 6799.

Our Research Team

Our Publications

2022

Arnold R, Pianta TJ, Issar T, Kirby A, Scales CMK, Kwai NCG, Endre Z, Krishnan AV. Peripheral neuropathy: an important contributor to physical limitation and morbidity in stages 3 and 4 chronic kidney disease. Nephrol Dial Transplant. 2022 Mar 25;37(4):713-719. doi: 10.1093/ndt/gfab043. PMID: 33576810.

Lee JT, Mittal DL, Warby A, Kao S, Dhillon HM, Vardy JL. Dying of mesothelioma: A qualitative exploration of caregiver experiences [published online ahead of print, 2022 Jun 20]. Eur J Cancer Care (Engl). 2022;e13627. doi:10.1111/ecc.13627.

Lim LY, Loneragan R, Lee J, Chan C. Long-Term Peritoneal Indwelling Catheters for Malignant Ascites: A Retrospective Case Series of PleurX and Peritoneal Port [published online ahead of print, 2022 Mar 23]. J Palliat Med. 2022;10.1089/jpm.2021.0504. doi:10.1089/jpm.2021.0504.

Lovell MR, Phillips JL, Luckett T, ... Lee J, et al. Effect of Cancer Pain Guideline Implementation on Pain Outcomes Among Adult Outpatients With Cancer-Related Pain: A Stepped Wedge Cluster Randomized Trial. JAMA Netw Open. 2022;5(2):e220060. Published 2022 Feb 1. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.0060.

Matsuoka H, Clark K, Fazekas B, ... Lee J et al. Phase III, international, multicentre, double-blind, dose increment, parallel-arm, randomised controlled trial of duloxetine versus pregabalin for opioid-unresponsive neuropathic cancer pain: a JORTC-PAL16 trial protocol. BMJ Open. 2022;12(2):e050182. Published 2022 Feb 7. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2021-050182.

2021

Le BH, Aggarwal G, Douglas C, Green M, Nicoll A, Ahmedzai S. Oxycodone/naloxone prolonged-release tablets in patients with moderate-to-severe, chronic cancer pain: Challenges in the context of hepatic impairment. Asia Pac J Clin Oncol. 2021 Mar 3. doi: 10.1111/ajco.13561. 

Lin CP, Boufkhed S, Kizawa Y, Mori M, Hamzah E, Aggarwal G, Namisango E, Higginson IJ, Goh C, Harding R. Preparedness to Face the COVID-19 Pandemic in Hospice and Palliative Care Services in the Asia-Pacific Region: A Rapid Online Survey. Am J Hosp Palliat Care. 2021 Jul;38(7):861-868.

Sands, M., Sharma, S., Carpenter, L., Hartshorn, A., Lee, J., Lujic, S., Congdon, M., Buchanan, A., Agar, M., Vardy, J. (2021). "SQiD, the Single Question in Delirium; can a single question help clinicians to detect delirium in hospitalised cancer patients?" running heading Single Question in Delirium (Bcan-D-20-01665). BMC Cancer, 21(1), 75.

2019

Lee JT, Sanderson CR, Xuan W, Agar M. Lidocaine for Cancer Pain in Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. J Palliat Med 2019;22(3):326-34. doi: 10.1089/jpm.2018.0257.

Our Presentations

Gough I, Stewart L, Myhill B, Lee J, Dash M, Aggarwal G, Ritchie M, Huynh N, Bindley K, Di Giacomo M, Lie E. A multi-method program of work to inform revision of a bereavement service model of care based on lived experience of bereaved persons, and exploration of bereavement impacts of care in the healthcare system. Palliative Care NSW conference, Terrigal 2022.

Myhill B, Gough I,  Stewart L, Myhill B, Lee J, Dash M, Ritchie M, Huynh N, Bindley K, Di Giacomo M, Lie E, Aggarwal G.; A multi-method program of work to inform revision of a bereavement service model of care based on lived experience of bereaved persons, and exploration of bereavement impacts of care in the healthcare system. McGill International Palliative Care Congress, Montreal, 2022.

Scales, C. Exercise and Sports Science Australia (ESSA) COVID-19 Exercise Guidelines Webinar.