Run for Research and for Tommy's

Tommy’s charity fundraising story, 25/09/2017

Here at Tommy's, we are fortunate enough to be supported by a number of incredible individuals. One such individual is Leanne Homer, researcher and trial Coordinator who is running in the Birmingham marathon for Tommy’s this year. Leanne recently took time out from her busy schedule to talk to us about her work and why she is running.  

Why did you choose to run the Birmingham marathon for Tommy’s?                 

When I’d finished running the Birmingham Half marathon in 2014 I felt I could have kept going and when I saw they were bringing the full marathon back to Birmingham in 2017 I thought I have to sign up! I have applied for a place in the London marathon the past few years and have been unsuccessful but running on home turf is ideal.

The Tommy’s National Centre for Miscarriage Research was established in April 2016 which I’d heard a lot about through work and when I started working on a miscarriage clinical trial last year I was shocked to realise just how common miscarriage really is (overall up to 1 in 4 pregnancies will end in miscarriage). When choosing a charity to run for, Tommy’s naturally came to mind – helping to fund research in to miscarriage, an occurrence which is poorly understood and affects so many people, is definitely a worthwhile cause.

Is this your first charity run experience?

I’ve done the Race for Life a few times and the Birmingham Half marathon in 2014 for Anthony Nolan but this is my first full marathon – definitely my toughest physical challenge to date!

What does the MifeMiso clinical trial hope to achieve?

MifeMiso is comparing two drug treatments to see which is best for resolving ‘missed miscarriage’. Women who have unfortunately experienced a missed miscarriage may not have experienced any symptoms and may still feel they have an ongoing pregnancy.

Women in this situation are often diagnosed with a miscarriage at their dating scan when unfortunately a foetal heart beat isn’t present. A drug called misoprostol is currently given to women who wish to opt for drug treatment however it is uncertain if giving an additional drug, mifepristone, can help resolve the miscarriage more quickly and effectively.

The aim of MifeMiso is to recruit 710 women over 2 years with half the women receiving just misoprostol and the other half receiving mifepristone and misoprostol. All women will receive a follow up ultrasound scan within 7 days after starting the medical treatment to see if the pregnancy tissue has been removed.

Women who participate in the trial will also have the opportunity to provide feedback via a short questionnaire and an optional follow up interview to talk about their miscarriage treatment and experience of participating in the trial. This information will be extremely valuable in helping to inform miscarriage treatment for women in the future.

What sets the MifeMiso trial apart from previous studies?  

Other studies have looked at comparing drug treatments for miscarriage but they have been small studies providing low quality evidence. A funding body called the NIHR HTA (National Institute for Health Research Health Technology Assessment) requested that a large scale clinical trial was conducted in this area to definitively answer this important research question of which is the best drug treatment.

Hospitals across the UK are currently offering different treatments due to the lack of good quality evidence therefore MifeMiso is a very important trial.

Are you still recruiting for this trial? 

Not any longer no. 

Want to learn more? 

Our trial website is www.birmingham.ac.uk/mifemiso To find out more information about the Tommy’s National Centre for Miscarriage Research please visit: http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/research/activity/mds/centres/maternal-health/index.aspx

Learn more about the impact of our research or find further information on any of our current trials today.