COMET Clinical Trials Consortium (CCTC)

The COMET Clinical Trial Consortium (CCTC) website was conceptualized by Dr. Christine Brezden-Masley, who first presented the idea to COMET members in October 2010. Shortly thereafter, the first project manager was hired and the collection of clinical trial information began. The site officially launched in September 2011, and has continued to grow in membership since then.

One of the fundamental goals of Cancer Care Ontario is for every oncology patient to have access to clinical trials, specifically since overall clinical trial enrolment is decreasing. It is recognized that the majority of cancer clinical care occurs in non-cancer centers. Within the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and surrounding regions, this occurs in COMET (Community-Oncologists in Metropolitan Toronto) sites, where an estimated 5000 new cancer patients are seen annually. These are cancer clinics affiliated with community hospitals. For these patients, access to clinical trials depends on the community hospital’s infrastructure to support oncology clinical trials.

Within the COMET Clinical Trials Consortium (CCTC), each individual member site will be linked for the purpose of improving accrual and access to cancer clinical trials for cancer patients being treated across Ontario.