First participant joins new Parkinson’s Disease study at UCLH

UCLH has recruited the first participant for a new UK based study for Parkinson’s Disease (PD).  The ASPro-PD study is testing whether treatment with a drug called ambroxol is associated with an improvement in motor and non-motor function compared with placebo.

Professor Anthony Schapira, Professor of Clinical Sciences at UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology and Consultant Neurologist at UCLH is Chief Investigator for the study in the UK, and Dr Marco Toffoli, Consultant Neurologist, is leading the study at UCLH. The study is being delivered at the NIHR UCLH Clinical Research Facility site located within the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery. It is supported by the NIHR UCLH Biomedical Research Centre.

PD is the second most common neurodegenerative disease after Alzheimer’s disease. It is a condition in which parts of the brain become progressively damaged over many years and is characterised by the core motor symptoms of tremor, limb rigidity, stiffness, and slowness of movement (bradykinesia).

Currently, treatment for Parkinson’s is limited to treating symptoms with no treatment available that can slow or prevent disease progression. The purpose of this trial is to investigate whether ambroxol can slow down the progression of Parkinson’s disease and whether it is safe to use over a prolonged period. The trial aims to recruit 330 patients from several hospitals across the UK in a placebo-controlled trial.

Dr Marco Toffoli said, “I am thankful to all participants who have joined ASPro-PD or that will do so in the future. Their contribution is invaluable in advancing Parkinson disease treatment. We are hopeful that our joint efforts will make a difference."

Prof Anthony Schapira said, "This trial is the result of 10 years of intensive investigation of the effects of ambroxol in the lab. Our first trial of ambroxol in Parkinson’s, also undertaken at UCLH, confirmed its potential and laid the basis for this large trial to test its potential to slow progression. We are grateful to Cure Parkinson’s, the Van Andel Institute, Parkinson’s UK and the John Black Charitable Foundation for their generous support for the study.”

The first participant fed back that “Visits to the Leonard Wolfson Centre at Queen Square are very special. I am looked after by an amazing team of healthcare professionals. There’s Daniele, the nurse from Italy, who has told me all about his mother’s lasagna, sounds delicious. And Jordi, the nurse from Spain, who has taken more blood from my arms than I knew I ever had. And keeping a watchful eye over us all is the wonderful and formidable Dr. Molly – the conductor of the medical orchestra. The trial is ‘double-blind’, which means that none of us know whether I’m taking the placebo or the real thing.”

This trial is managed by the Comprehensive Clinical Trials Unit (CCTU) at University College London (UCL) and sponsored by University College London (UCL). The NIHR UCLH Clinical Research Facility site at Queen Square along with the UCLH/UCL Joint Research Office Clinical trials team comprehensively supported the earlier phase 2 pilot study which helped secure funding for this larger phase multicentre trial.

For more information about the trial contact: cctu.aspro-pd@ucl.ac.uk