Minnesota EPC Awarded Contract to Research Anal Carcinoma Treatments

The Minnesota Evidence-Based Practice Center (EPC) received a $417,000 contract from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) to conduct a systematic review evaluating the effectiveness of treatments for Stage I–III anal squamous cell carcinomas.

The project will be co-led by Mary Butler, co-director of the Minnesota EPC and CLHSS Evidence Synthesis unit and an associate professor in the School of Public Health, and Paolo Goffredo, assistant professor in the Medical School Division of Colon & Rectal Surgery. The project team will create a peer-reviewed report of their findings, present the report at a webinar, and submit a manuscript of their results to a journal over the next four years.

The aim of the systematic review is to help clinicians, patients, and other stakeholders make informed decisions about treating anal carcinomas. Treatments like chemoradiation are effective at managing anal carcinomas, but because of their toxicity they are often discontinued. The Minnesota EPC team hopes to identify optimal treatment options that balance reducing toxicity with effectively treating the cancer.

The Minnesota EPC is a collaboration between the University of Minnesota and Minneapolis VA Health Care System and is one of nine EPCs funded by the AHRQ to conduct systematic reviews of health topics. Minnesota EPC partners with CLHSS in the development and operation of the Evidence Synthesis unit.