Identifying Clinical Research Priorities in Interventional Pulmonary: An Interventional Pulmonology Outcomes Group (IPOG) Working Group Report.

Abstract

The field of Interventional Pulmonology suffers from a paucity of methodologically robust studies to inform patient care, often relying on retrospective, single-center, non-comparative cohorts of commercialized products. The Interventional Pulmonary Outcomes Group (IPOG) was established to address the critical need for increased scientific rigor within the Interventional Pulmonology community. IPOG convened a meeting to assess the current state and future needs for minimally invasive lung cancer diagnostics and treatment. The goals of this meeting were to review the current landscape, and identify gaps and barriers in lung cancer diagnostics and therapeutics research. From this discussion short- and long-term research goals and priorities were identified. Nineteen international experts from various institutions and disciplines participated. The top short-term priorities identified were: 1) harmonization of core outcome measures in interventional pulmonology trials, 2) validation of a pathway/structure for the introduction of new technology, 3) establishment of a patient advisory board with focus on patient centered outcomes, 4) early engagement with industry partnerships during clinical trial design. The top long-term priorities identified were: 1) characterize the development, implementation, and role of bronchoscopic ablation, 2) validation and clinical utility of biomarker use and artificial intelligence, 3) implement research training skills for junior investigators in interventional pulmonology, 4) deliver 5 prospective, large clinical trials, with at least one adaptive trial, 5) develop a biorepository accessible to investigators. This perspective reviews the colloquium discussions, the identified priorities and the plans to help address those priorities as well as progress made in the year since its inception. Keywords: Interventional Pulmonology Outcomes Group; Interventional Pulmonology; Lung Cancer; Research; Outcomes.