Research Trials

The University of Colorado Center for Advanced Reproductive Medicine has been chosen by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to participate in three critical research efforts.  The National Institutes of Health is the primary organization in the United States which promotes and funds the most important research that is performed in this country.  NIH is an arm of the federal government and all awards made through the NIH represent the highest research accomplishment in the country.  Very few researchers or organizations ever obtain research funding from the NIH.  The University of Colorado Center for Advanced Reproductive Medicine has been continuously funded by NIH since the mid 1990’s.  The most important clinical research networks in the country are funded through the NIH, and the University of Colorado Center for Reproductive Medicine has not one, but three funded Centers. 

1)           The Reproductive Medicine Network (RMN)

              The Reproductive Medicine Network was established in the 1990’s to solicit and fund research into the most important aspects of reproductive medicine. These research projects include both men and women and have resulted in critically important findings that have been published in the best journals in the world including the New England Journal of Medicine.  In 2000 the University of Colorado Center for Advanced Reproductive Medicine was chosen as one of eight national sites including the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania State University, the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, Wayne State University, Baylor College of Medicine, the University of Alabama, and the University of Texas Southwestern.  The Reproductive Medicine Network published critical information about infertility treatment, the diagnosis and treatment of luteal phase abnormalities, and most recently a study which defined the relative effectiveness of clomiphene versus metformin in treatment of infertile women with polycystic ovarian syndrome.  The initial period of participation in the Reproductive Medicine Network was from 2000 to 2007.  In 2007 the NIH held another competition for inclusion in the RMN.  The University of Colorado Center for Advanced Reproductive Medicine was again chosen, this time as one of only seven universities to be honored.  The other six medical schools are the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania State University, Wayne State University, the University of Texas at San Antonio, the University of Michigan, and the University of Vermont. 

              Being named as a research unit of the NIH Reproductive Medicine Network reinforces the extraordinarily high quality of the clinical care and research being provided in this practice.  Furthermore, participation in the RMN ensures that doctors, nurses, and other personnel in this Center are fully informed of progress in the field of reproductive medicine.

2.           Contraceptive Clinical Trials Network (CCTN)

              In 1998 the University of Colorado Center for Advanced Reproductive Medicine was chosen to be one of nine sites participating in the Contraceptive Clinical Trial Network.  The purpose of this network is to develop and test new and effective approaches to contraception.  This is important to all patients because a thorough understanding of the biology of reproduction helps physicians and the University of Colorado Center for Advanced Reproductive Medicine to expand information about all aspects including both contraception and promotion of fertility.  After successfully participating in the Contraceptive Clinical Trials Network for five years, the NIH required a re-competition and the University of Colorado Center for Advanced Reproductive Medicine was again awarded participation in the Contraceptive Clinical Trial Network in 2005 for the period 2005 to 2011.

3.           The Oncofertility Consortium.

The University of Colorado Center for Advanced Reproductive Medicine has recently been recognized a third time by an NIH clinical network, this time the Oncofertility Consortium.  This Consortium has as its primary goal education and clinical care of reproductive age women who are diagnosed with cancer.  Many of the cancer treatments that are required for such patients will render them sterile.  The University of Colorado Center for Advanced Reproductive Medicine site has been included among the leading centers in the country to participate in a national program to try to better understand fertility issues in women being treated for cancer.  The ultimate goal will be to help these women retain ovarian function and fertility in the future.  As part of the Centers’ initiatives, we are working closely with many cancer doctors throughout our region to care for men diagnosed with cancer as well in addition to the women being treated as part of the Consortium.  Many practitioners refer patients for urgent consultation to the University of Colorado Center for Advanced Reproductive Medicine because of its high profile and outstanding reputation for understanding the reproductive challenges faced by these patients.

              In addition to the research programs sponsored by the National Institutes of Health, the University of Colorado Center for Advanced Reproductive Medicine has other ongoing research protocols in the area of infertility, endometriosis, uterine fibroids, abnormal bleeding, hormone replacement, and contraception.  All research protocols performed at the University of Colorado Center for Advanced Reproductive Medicine must be reviewed and approved by the Colorado Multiple Institutional Review Board, an organization that ensures that all research being done is carried out in an ethical and professionally responsible manner that is likely to provide new and important information while at the same time respecting the autonomy and the physical safety of all research subjects.