The University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) has launched the Clinical Trials Network of Tennessee (CTN2). Operating as a separate 501(c) (3) subsidiary of the University of Tennessee Research Foundation (UTRF), CTN2 was created to enable UTHSC clinical research faculty to design, solicit, and conduct robust statewide clinical trials with the overarching goal of providing new therapeutics and medical devices aimed at improving the health of all Tennesseans.
The Clinical Trials Network of Tennessee was the vision of Steven R. Goodman, PhD, vice chancellor for Research at UTHSC.
"CTN2 will provide robust statewide clinical trials that will improve medical treatments, while providing UTHSC credit for the clinical trial contracts being performed by its faculty who are located at participating hospitals throughout the state," Goodman said.
CTN2 will allow UTHSC faculty to respond to opportunities for clinical trials at the speed of industry. The UT Board of Trustees committed $3 million in 2017 to support the first three years of CTN2 operations, and on March 23, 2018 the board agreed to release the first-year funds to UTRF, which will then fund CTN2.
"Based on UTRF's experiences supporting other projects across UT, we've established CTN2 as a nonprofit UTRF subsidiary and set up the bylaws to ensure that its governing board represents all of the stakeholders," said Richard Magid, PhD, vice president of UTRF at UTHSC. Dr. Magid has also been elected to serve as the UTRF board representative for CTN2.