Liverpool Hospital puts call out to migraine sufferers to trial new drug treatment
A new combination of blood pressure and cholesterol lowering drugs are being trialled to treat migraine sufferers. The unique trial is being offered at Liverpool Hospital.
The Express
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A unique trial is being offered at Liverpool Hospital — and it is hoping to transform the lives of migraine sufferers.
The trial, called the Headache Prevention Project (HAPPY), uses small doses of blood pressure and cholesterol lowering drugs.
If the treatment is successful, it would be the first preventive treatment for migraines without side effects on the market.
Only 20 per cent of three million migraine sufferers in Australia take preventive medicine because of the side effects like fatigue, weight gain, depression.
Researchers from the George Institute for Global Health are hoping this trial will be the solution and have already opened it up to patients at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital.
Tanya Walker, 50, has just finished the trial at the RPA.
Ms Walker has suffered side-splitting migraines since she was 14 and was so desperate to find a cure that she drove from Nowra to Sydney to take part in the trial.
Luckily, the kilometres paid off — with the frequency of her migraine’s halved.
“Before the trial I averaged around eight migraines a month which could last anywhere from six to 24 hours. During the trial it dropped to around four or five per month,” Ms Walker said.
“It took away the daily fear I had about developing a migraine.”
Dr Dennis Cordato is leading the trial at Liverpool Hospital and said they were hoping for 180 people to take part in HAPPY.
Dr Cordato said the treatment is very safe because the drugs used are well known and used.
“There are high hopes for this trial,” Dr Cordato said.
“But the only way to find out (if this treatment works) is to do a proper study.”
To take part in the trial, participants must be aged 18-65, have 2-14 migraines a month for at least 12 months, and must have started experiencing migraines before they turned 50.
They must also be willing to take medication for 12 weeks and be able to visit Liverpool Hospital every four weeks for five months.
To find out more about the trial phone the toll free number 1800 397 371. Or contact Emily
Comito at ecomito@georgeinstitute.org.au
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