FOUNDATION
Scaling Clinical Trials for Long Lyme
In 2024 the Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation and Mount Sinai piloted a clinic providing empathetic, evidence-backed care to those with infection-association chronic conditions: The Cohen Center for Recovery from Complex Chronic Illness (CoRE). Directors David Putrino, PhD, PT, and Amy Proal, PhD, President of the Polybio Research Foundation, collaborate on innovative translational research projects from which a new understanding is emerging of how bacterial, viral, and other pathogens interact with the immune system, at times leading to disabling chronic illness as well as diseases associated with aging.
The Opportunity
As dedicated supporters of tickborne disease research, the Foundation asked Mount Sinai how we would lead a Clinical Trials Network of academic medical centers toward new therapeutic strategies for long Lyme.
The Process
Over several months, we met with Drs. Putrino and Proal to capture their cohesive vision for expanding tickborne disease research across the country and decentralizing clinical trials to promote the rapid discovery that is so urgently needed by patients with long Lyme. Central to this proposal was deep molecular characterization of patients as research participants, to enable insights into immune mechanisms as well as correlations with hormonal factors. Key decisions involved the scope of this proposal in the context of continued partnership with the Foundation as well as development of a tiered budget narrative.
