Although ECP has been in clinical use for more than 25 years and is widely used for various clinical entities, the mode of action remains elusive in Europe. ESOT decided to create an expert working group to design a survey to assess the educational gaps and the inequality of access for patients and to work to define a standard of care for ECP treatment in heart, lung and kidney transplant recipients.
In April 2023, ESOT kicked off a multidisciplinary project that will last approximately 48 months and includes several educational activities to promote equality in patient access and foster interdisciplinary collaboration among experts in transplantation and immune haematology.
The ECP expert working group, supported by ESOT, will collect retrospective data on best practices in selected countries and survey a pool of centres to identify unmet needs. The group of experts will also monitor the efficacy before and during ECP treatment for each indication in heart, lung and kidney transplants. The primary outcome of this study will be an official publication with international recommendations. The manuscript will be submitted for publication to Transplant International (the ESOT journal).
Furthermore, ESOT aims at bringing together a pool of immune-haematologists experts who are used to treat autoimmune diseases and Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) to foster interaction between them and transplant physicians to discuss and inform about the use of this treatment strategy. The aim is to provide a comprehensive educational platform and ensure that HCPs have access to information and education on ECP.
To support the education process and to facilitate access to information on ECP, a series of expert meetings will be organised, including country workshops, webinars, and a masterclass. In addition, online educational materials will be created and made accessible through this platform.
By undertaking these comprehensive efforts, ESOT strives to improve patient outcomes, enhance the quality of care, and contribute to advancing ECP as a valuable treatment modality in solid organ transplantation.
In this section, you can find all resources concerning the ECP project, supported by Mallinckrodt.