Mayo Clinic to use blockchain for hypertension clinical trials

Starting this month, the Mayo Clinic will onboard a blockchain-integrated platform by Triall for a two-year multi-center pulmonary arterial hypertension study that includes 10 research sites and more than 500 patients.

WHY IT MATTERS

By building an immutable blockchain-registered audit trail with Trial’s Veritable Proof API, Mayo Clinic will test end-to-end clinical data integrity—from inception to post-study evaluation.

The platform will provide secure, decentralized data capture, document management, study monitoring and electronic consent for the clinical trial, according to the technology company’s announcement.

Mayo Clinic investigators, regulators, and other stakeholders can access the ledger through a system-independent interface that will be accessible to multiple stakeholders. Integration with medical devices supports remote data collection, and mobile access to the platform will help Mayo Clinic manage the study.

Triall developed the blockchain-integrated document management system Verial eTMF, used in the world’s first blockchain-supported clinical trials. In March, Trial partnered with Crucial Data Solutions, a clinical trial data collection and processing software provider that has been used in more than 7,000 clinical trials worldwide.

The platform is tokenized with the company’s native TRL token, which can be used to compensate participants in clinical trials, meaning it is used by third parties to access the platform.

If successful, Triall hopes to collaborate further decentralized medical research with the Mayo Clinic.

THE BIGGER TREND

In 2018, the Mayo Clinic explored blockchain for storing electronic health records with London-based Medicalchain, but the use cases did not resonate long-term.

The use of blockchain for healthcare — distributed ledger technology, with no central authority over data, that provides secure, reliable, real-time data storage and sharing — has been promising but limited so far, said Dr. John Halamka, president of the Mayo Clinic Platform.

In a In a December 2021 article on the Mayo Clinic Platform website written with Paul Cerrato, a senior research analyst and communications specialist at the clinic, Halamka said the search for blockchain’s “sweet spot” in the healthcare ecosystem continues.

“Like many ‘revolutions,’ blockchain continues to face problems when implemented in the real world,” he said. “Its true value will take time and patience to determine.”

Others believe blockchain can provide never-before-seen transparency for payment transactions in the healthcare system.

“Blockchain gives both payers and providers complete visibility into the entire lifecycle of a claim, from the patient registering at the front desk to disputing a charge to sending an explanation of benefits,” said Kali Durgampudi, CTO at Zelis, with IT news in the healthcare system in July in a conversation about healthcare’s biggest blockchain myths.

Trial notes on its website that cclinical trials have taken place utilizing telemedicine and mobile engagement tools that capture data, doctor-patient interactions and patient reminders, enabling participation from home.

Decentralization can offer a better patient experience, according to the company, by increasing the convenience and minimizing the burdens of participating in a clinical trial.

ON POST

“We are confident that our collaboration will pave the way for further innovation and improved quality in clinical development, leveraging the power of blockchain technology where it truly adds value,” said Hadil Es-Sbai, co-founder and CEO of Triall, in a statement.

Andrea Fox is a senior editor for Healthcare IT News.
Email: [email protected]
Healthcare IT News is a HIMSS publication.