The Clinical Trial Units (CTUs) network comprises 11 expert trial units across Canada, strategically positioned to provide specialized support for a wide range of trials, from conventional to innovative designs. Our CTUs are dedicated to advancing clinical research, fostering collaborations across the clinical trials landscape, and ensuring excellence in trial design and execution.
To learn more and collaborate with our CTUs, please see below!
Table of Contents
Accelerating Randomized Trials (ART) Platform
Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University
The ART platform is divided into three streams that offer different services and training opportunities to researchers. The Pragmatic Trials Stream, designed to support researchers as they plan and execute large-scale pragmatic trials, has four trial coordinators, two research assistants, a manager, two biostatisticians, two methodologists, and assistants focused on all trial phases. It is supporting six large trials with a total of 80,000 patients. One of the trials, Dial-Mag, is being conducted in 150 hemodialysis centres across four provinces. Over the next decade, this stream aims to on-board more than 20 large-scale trials, streamlining the process of registry-based trials in partnership with national organizations such as Health Data Research Network (HDRN) Canada.
Trial Focus(es):
Gastrointestinal (Inflammatory bowel disease) trials and the use of admin data and streamlined processes to execute trials.
For more information, or to collaborate on a trial, visit the ART Platform Website.
Canadian Center for Vaccinology (CCfV)
Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University
The Canadian Center for Vaccinology (CCfV) is Canada’s only fully integrated collaborative vaccine research facility spanning clinical trials/evaluation, basic science, and social science. CCfV serves as a critical “academic pipeline” for Canadian vaccine priorities – from the development of promising new vaccine candidates from Canadian and international companies, to applied public health research that supports timely public health decision-making. CCfV leads Phase 1–4 clinical trials in all age populations, from infants to the elderly. Over the past 15 years, the center has developed a specialization in early phase vaccine clinical trials, with more than 25 such trials. In 2020-21 CCfV was approached to undertake five Phase 1 trials for “made in Canada” COVID-19 vaccines, three of which are completed; currently CCfV is leading or collaborating on 15 COVID projects. CCfV clinical facilities include a 7,000 sq. ft. full-containment Vaccine Challenge Unit (VCU) specifically designed for controlled human infection studies – the first of only two such units in Canada.
Trial Focus(es):
Infectious disease and vaccines.
For more information, or to collaborate on a trial, visit the CCfV Website.
Canadian VIGOUR Centre (CVC)
Faculty of Medicine, University of Alberta
Canadian VIGOUR Centre (CVC) is an academic research organization specializing in comprehensive full-service management of clinical trials of cardiovascular therapies, including study design, managing, monitoring, analyzing, and reporting trial results. Since inception in 1997, it has designed and delivered 72 clinical trials in CV medicine and surgery, including >20,000 patients from Canada, and biosamples to match (>200,000 ECGs, >10,000 biosamples). In addition, large-scale datasets held by CVC represent six million people in Canada. Some of the ‘firsts’ and practice changing trials include time-to-treatment trials with fibrinolytics for myocardial infarction (establishing these as standard of care from first point of contact through to the hospital), the largest mega-trial in acute heart failure, the pivotal trial in a biomarker-guided strategy in heart failure, lipid lowering therapy trials with statins, ezetimibe, and PCSk9 inhibitors, and the largest trial in dietary sodium restriction in heart failure.
Trial Focus(es):
Cardiovascular disease and trials with patient populations at risk for CVD (diabetes, renal, PH).
For more information, or to collaborate on a trial, visit the CVC Website.
Centre for Cardiovascular Innovation (CCI-CIC)
Vancouver Coastal Health / Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia
The UBC Centre for Cardiovascular Innovation – Centre d ’Innovation Cardiovasculaire (CCI-CIC) is a UBC Academic Research Centre that has grown exponentially since its inception. There are currently 85 investigators representing all health authorities in BC with over 40 experienced and trained clinical research staff including statisticians, data managers, information technology (IT) professionals, finance/ contract management experts, and clinical research coordinators and managers. The Centre is running over 30 national and international high-impact clinical trials, registries, and investigator-initiated studies along with over 70 site-based clinical studies. Clinical trials range from large scale industry funded RCTs to federal/provincial funded clinical studies.
Trial Focus(es):
Acute coronary syndromes (ACS), interventional and structural cardiology, cardiovascular surgery, arrhythmia and heart failure, cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention, women’s heart health, adult congenital, cardiology-oncology, sports cardiology, urology, neurology, and pharmaceutical sciences.
For more information, or to collaborate on a trial, visit the CCI-CIC Website.
CHIRON
Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Manitoba
The Clinical Trial Unit at the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences has experience in designing and conducting large multi-national randomized trials from project inception to completion. The Unit’s expertise in leading platform trials is a notable strength that was realized during the COVID pandemic. The diverse skills of the trial unit staff reflect the skillsets required to successfully conduct and complete traditional and novel RCTs. In addition to contracting, insurance and regulatory proficiency, the unit has been recognized as a leader in Bayesian adaptive platform trials.
Trial Focus(es):
Sepsis, anticoagulation, and platform trials.
CHU de Québec
Université Laval Research Center
The CHU de Québec-Université Laval is the largest Health Care Center in the province of Québec and more than 700 scientists form its research center. The Clinical Trial Unit is based within the Population Health and Optimal Research Practices (SPPOS) Unit of the research center. The CTU has expertise in conventional parallel group phase 3 trials and international trials. The CTU has access to SCIENTA, the Data Development and Exploitation Center of the CHU de Québec-Université Laval and brings together electronic medical data from the establishment’s clinical and administrative systems. SCIENTA offers services and support to secondary users by allowing the integration, validation and analysis of structured and unstructured data on health and social services information or compiled for research purposes.
Trial Focus(es):
Trauma, critical care medicine, ICU, neurology, and neurosurgery.
For more information, or to collaborate on a trial, visit the CHU Website.
Research Institute McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC)
McGill University Health Centre
The RI-MUHC is one of the largest clinical trial units in Canada and comprises 600 researchers, 1300 trainees and 1500 support staff. We are closely intertwined with McGill University, the McGill University Health Centre, and the Montreal Children’s Hospital. The RI-MUHC leads national and international clinical trials that are investigator initiated and/or linked with the private sector, working with patient partners. The RI-MUHC offers expertise in the areas of clinical trial design, management, training and implementation through the McConnell Centre for Innovative Medicine, which is fully equipped to conduct phase 1, 2 and 3 trials. The Clinical Innovation Platform, embedded within RI-MUHC, allows us to advance patient care based on clinical trial results. Practice-changing randomized controlled trials led by our institute have been published in the NEJM, such as short course TB therapy in adults and children, and studies that established the evidence base for repurposed medications for the treatment of COVID-19.
Trial Focus(es):
Prescribing, oncology, cardiology, respirology, infectious diseases, and pediatric gene therapy.
For more information, or to collaborate on a trial, visit the RI-MUHC Website.
Health Policy Trials Unit
Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary
The Health Policy Trials Unit works to ensure health policy decisions are informed by rigorous scientific evidence. Policy trials answer critical questions about which social, economic, and health care interventions improve health and why. The Health Policy Trials Unit contributes to the mission of the Centre for Health Policy at the O’Brien Institute for Public Health—to engage citizens, patients, community groups, researchers, governments, clinicians, and health system leaders to identify, test, and scale up policies with the greatest potential to improve health. The unit is situated at the intersection of several research and innovation partners at the Cumming School of Medicine that provide big data access, statistical, and machine learning methods and analytical support, trial design expertise, research administration, and knowledge translation including the Clinical Research Unit, the Centre for Health Informatics, and the Interdisciplinary Chronic Disease Collaboration. The Health Policy Trials Unit works closely with Alberta Health Services’ Strategic Clinical Networks, which are groups of clinicians, patients, and researchers who identify innovative ways to improve healthcare quality and outcomes in specific health areas.
Trial Focus(es):
Populations with low incomes and chronic diseases.
For more information, or to collaborate on a trial, visit the Health Policy Trials Unit Website.
Maternal Infant Child & Youth Research Network (MICYRN)
MICYRN is a federal not-for-profit, charitable organization founded in 2006 to build capacity for high-quality, applied health research. The network links 21 member organizations at academic health centers and is affiliated with over 25 practice-based research networks. It functions as Canada’s first non-oncology pediatric, de-centralized Academic Research Organization (ARO), offering pre- and post-award services for >150 investigators in the past 3 years. Pre-award services include: grant consultation, budget review, and protocol optimization, leveraging national and international scientific expertise. The post-award services include: regulatory application assistance, coordinated ethics submissions in partnerships with the CHEER initiative, quality assurance, contract negotiation, data management, and project management. In the last two years, MICRYN has supported over 20 clinical trial projects and currently serves as the collaboration center for the CIHR Canadian Pediatric COVID-19 Research Platform (POPCORN).
Trial Focus(es):
Maternal/perinatal health, neonatology, and pediatrics.
For more information, or to collaborate on a trial, visit the MICYRN Website.
Ottawa Hospital Research Institute (OHRI)
University of Ottawa
The Ottawa Methods Centre (OMC) at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute has a 17-year history conducting clinical trials across numerous fields. In the last five years, OMC has initiated close to 1000 trials (>50,000 patients), including industry trials. With >20 scientists and nearly 40 staff, OMC trialists are leaders in innovative trial design, such as pragmatic, early-phase, and cluster randomized trials. OMC is also home to Office for Patient Engagement in Research Activities (OPERA) and the BLUEPRINT team. OPERA advances patient-oriented research through consultations and resources, while BLUEPRINT develops novel approaches to optimizing early-phase and first-in-human protocols, accelerating bench-to-bedside translation. A major success by the unit is the pioneering of the REthinking Clinical Trials (REaCT) program, the most extensive pragmatic cancer clinical trials program in Canada, with >2,700 patients participating in >15 clinical trials.
Trial Focus(es):
Critical care, emergency medicine, infectious diseases, and stroke.
For more information, or to collaborate on a trial, visit the OHRI Website.
Population Health Research Institute (PHRI)
McMaster University & Hamilton Health Sciences
A research institute of McMaster University and Hamilton Health Sciences, PHRI specializes in large international clinical trials. Worldwide PHRI studies have enrolled >400,000 participants in >100 RCTs, with >20 trials enrolling ≥10,000 participants each; a dozen RCTs led by PHRI have resulted in global regulatory drug approvals. PHRI has 79 trial coordinators, 64 research assistants, 6 program directors/managers, 17 statisticians, 14 statistical programmers, 28 contracts and finance HQP, 39 computing HQP, a team with expertise in shipment of study materials and importation of biospecimens, 4 quality assurance HQPs, and >50 scientists. PHRI has biobanking capabilities for trials and has developed Canada’s largest research biobank.
Trial Focus(es):
Arrhythmia and thrombosis prevention, renal, diabetes, perioperative medicine, global and population health, acute coronary syndrome, cardio-oncology, and brain health.
For more information, or to collaborate on a trial, visit the PHRI Website.
