Expanding access to cancer clinical trials, closer to home

First set of UI Health Care and Mission Cancer + Blood joint clinical trials opened this summer

University of Iowa Health Care and Mission Cancer + Blood joined forces in Dec. 2024, with the shared vision of providing more Iowans with access to high-quality cancer care and clinical trials, closer to home. Now, less than a year later, the organizations have launched a joint clinical trial program, marking a major milestone toward bringing this vision to life.

Opened jointly in August 2025, the first two trials at both UI Health Care and Mission are interventional treatment trials of innovative medicines for patients with large-cell lymphoma. Each month, the portfolio of joint studies will expand for patient enrollment across Iowa. There are at least seven trials being prepared to open jointly in the coming months.

“Launching these joint trials so quickly after we came together shows our mutual dedication to collaboration and providing world-class cancer care to more Iowans, closer to home,” says Tara Graff, DO, MS, director of clinical research, Mission Cancer + Blood. Graff spearheads the clinical trials program at Mission. “We hit the ground running and have been able to make so much progress because we are so in sync with our vision for this program.”

The power of collaboration and shared resources

The power of sharing resources, expertise, and access to important research tools to advance cancer care is beginning to reveal itself internally and externally. Launching joint trials expands the number of patients who will benefit, making the trials and treatments more accessible to all Iowans, closer to where they live.

“Today’s clinical trials lead to tomorrow’s standard of care,” says Graff. “Many medications prescribed today were, until very recently, only available via clinical trials. For some patients, a clinical trial may be their only chance at survival.”

Both UI Health Care and Mission Cancer + Blood had robust clinical trials programs prior to joining forces. Now, fueled by a shared passion for and dedication to advancing cancer care and developing the latest drugs, treatments, and therapies, the organizations plan to increase the number of trials that are available to patients across Iowa.

The next trials slated to open jointly in the coming months are focused on improving treatment for people with lymphoma, multiple myeloma, lung cancer, and breast cancer. Additionally, three trials already open at UI Health Care will expand to Mission later this year – one for non-small cell lung cancer and two for lymphoma – and one trial currently at Mission enrolling patients with breast cancer is being evaluated to open at UI Health Care.

The team is currently working with study sponsors and through regulatory requirements to expand enrollment to additional sites.

“Our ultimate goal is to make these treatments and trials more available to patients closer to where they live,” says Mimi McKay, assistant director, navigation and Network Operations, UI Health Care Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center. “We want to eliminate as many barriers to participation as possible.”

How clinical trials are selected

From the very beginning, both teams began collaborating and sharing new trials each were evaluating. The trials originate from a variety of sources and generally fall into three categories: cooperative groups or consortiums using federally funded research grants and initiatives; those funded from the pharmaceutical industry; and investigator-instigated trials. All play an important role in advancing cancer care and taking science from the bench to the bedside. All offer opportunities for patients to access cutting-edge treatments that promise to improve outcomes and reduce symptoms compared with older treatments.

After being introduced to UI Health Care and/or Mission, the new trials are then evaluated by a team of physicians, regulatory, finance, and pharmacy staff, as well as clinical trial coordinators, who all play a part to evaluate which trials will work at each location.

Determining this involves a number of factors. One of the key considerations is the novelty of the trial – for example, how many other similar trials are being conducted already? A new trial may not fit if it is similar to an ongoing trial that is already being conducted.

Another key factor is the patient population at a given location, and whether it makes sense to introduce a trial given the number of patients with the suitable diagnosis. For example, we may open one site for rare cancers that are typically only seen at an academic medical center like UI Health Care.

However, Shannon Benson, chief administrative officer, Mission, says the teams are working to build flexible processes for how the joint clinical trials will run.

“If we determine a patient is identified as a good fit for a trial after it’s already opened, we can quickly open a satellite trial site,” says Benson.

Offering trials at multiple locations not only provides more options to more patients; it enhances research by providing access to a broader pool of more representative participants, which assures that the results truly apply, for example, to both rural and urban cancer patients despite different access to care.

Ways to learn more

All UI Health Care and Mission clinical trials are posted on their websites for patients and providers to learn about what trials are currently available. Patients who think they may be a candidate for participation are encouraged to talk to their oncologist about whether they meet the eligibility guidelines. Patients are also welcome to call either the Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center clinical trials hotline at 319-353-8155 or email the Mission team at [email protected] for more information.