Gynaecology research

Study portfolio

FUTURE Study – Female Urgency, Trial of Urodynamics as Routine Evaluation

The FUTURE study aims to assess whether routinely performing urodynamic studies, over and above comprehensive clinical assessment in women with refractory over active bladders, improves the outcomes of treatment. We also want to assess whether doing the UDS test on everybody makes the best use of the NHS resources i.e. whether it is cost-effective.

The TOPSY Trial

A study comparing self-management with clinic based follow up for women using a vaginal pessary for prolapse

Pelvic organ prolapse is a common condition that often leads to women having symptoms that interrupt their day to day life. One treatment that some women receive for pelvic organ prolapse is a vaginal pessary. However, it is not clear how to support women once their pessary is in place. One option is that women attend an appointment approximately every four to six months to have their pessary changed: this is called standard pessary care. Another option is that women are taught how to remove and re-insert their pessary at home: this is called pessary self-management.

At the moment there is no evidence to tell us which of these is better for women. Therefore this study aims to compare standard pessary care with pessary self-management to find out which is better at improving women’s quality of life when they are using a vaginal pessary for treatment of pelvic organ prolapse.

ROCKeTs

Refining Ovarian Cancer Test Accuracy Scores

A test accuracy study to validate new risk scores in women with symptoms of suspected ovarian cancer
We know that lots of women have symptoms such as bloating and tummy discomfort. It is also very common to have cysts (balloon like swellings) on women’s ovaries picked up by ultrasound. In addition, some women have higher levels of a blood test called CA125; this blood test is abnormal in lots of conditions – women with periods, fibroids, appendicitis etc. A very small number of women with ovarian cysts or abnormal CA125 will go on to be diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

The purpose of this study is to identify better tests for women with ovarian cysts or abnormal blood tests so we can pick up ovarian cancer earlier. This will also reduce unnecessary tests, hospital visits and distress in women who don’t have cancer.

PROTECTOR

PROTECTOR is an observational research study for women who are at an increased risk of developing ovarian cancer. Some women may carry a fault/alteration in their BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene making them high risk. Whilst, others may be at an increased risk due to a strong family history of cancer or a fault in another ovarian cancer causing gene like RAD51C, RAD51D or BRIP1. This study aims to assess the impact on women of a new two-step option to prevent ovarian cancer. This involves initially just having your tubes (fallopian tubes) removed to prevent ovarian cancer. This is followed by removing your ovaries in a separate operation at a later date of your choosing. The study assesses women’s views and the impact of this approach to prevent ovarian cancer on sexual function, hormone levels, quality of life and overall satisfaction. Outcomes from this new approach are compared to the traditional approach of removal of both tubes and ovaries at the same operation. We also compared this to the well-being of women who do not have an operation.