The Regional Victorian Trials Alliance: 
Linkages, Innovation, Special Populations, Equity (ReViTALISE) project was funded by a $18.6m Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) grant, under the Rural, Regional and Remote Clinical Trial Enabling Infrastructure Fund.

Running over 5 years, the project was administered by the Border Medical Oncology Research Unit, working with the Regional Trials Network Victoria (RTN-Vic).


OUR GOAL

  • Equal access to high-quality cancer care for regional and rural Victorians, leading to better health outcomes.
  • Bridging the metropolitan-regional trials gap by 2025, bringing the regional participation rates in line with metropolitan rates.
  • Better cancer outcomes for regional Victorians by increasing regional trial participation rates.

The ReViTALISE project concludes, achieving its goals across all seven initiatives.

In 2017, of the 1587 Victorian cancer clinical trial patients, only 27% were rural residents, and of those, only 81 patients participated at a rural site (based on 2017 Cancer Council Victoria Clinical Trial Management System).

The ReViTALISE project aimed to increase clinical trial participation in regional and rural Victoria by supporting new or fledgling regional sites, building capability and capacity, increasing clinical trial activity in areas of unmet need, and upskilling the regional workforce.

The project addressed the specific needs of regional and rural Victorians through seven initiatives, each led by a regional Victorian health service and advised by our consumer advisory network:

  • Expanding the Regional Trials Network
    Built capability and capacity at Mildura Base Hospital and Latrobe Regional Health by leveraging mentorship from other regional network member sites, ultimately delivering clinical trials to under-served Victorians.
  • Palliative & Supportive Care
    Increased the number of palliative and supportive care patients participating in clinical trials in regional Victoria. The initiative also increased awareness and participation in clinical research across the palliative care workforce.
  • Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Clinical Trial Access
    Completed the Lotjpa Yapaneyepuk pilot at Goulburn Valley Health, Shepparton, co-designing video resources to help bridge the health gap for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples.
  • Immunotherapy Trials
    Improved access to immunotherapy research, especially in cancers newer to immunotherapy interventions. The initiative also created training resources for health professionals and an immune-related adverse events (irAE) alert card for immunotherapy patients.
  • Registry Trials
    This initiative was the first step into understanding how our populations may be similar or different to those in metro areas. The aim was to increase the number of clinical trials at regional sites and increase engagement of regional clinicians in clinical trial design. 
  • Geriatric Oncology (GO)
    The GO initiative improved access and participation among older adults in oncology clinical trials. It has built capacity and capability through traininng and mentorship in geriatric oncology trials across regional, rural and remote Victoria.
  • Regional Research Teaching Hub - @Research
    The @Research hub was developed with and for regional health professionals, to improve access to health services research, resources and training. 
  • Every VoiceCAN Consumer Advisory Network
    Supporting and empowering regional consumers involved in ReViTALISE Initiatives