Global Cardiovascular Research Funders Forum (GCRFF)

Clinical trials are necessary to test promising research results from (pre)clinical research in clinical practice. In particular, setting up, conducting and funding international clinical trials is challenging for several reasons. Therefore, the Swiss Heart Foundation, together with other international funders of cardiovascular research who have joined forces in the Global Cardiovascular Research Funders Forum (GCRFF), is part of an initiative to make this easier: the GCRFF Multinational Clinical Trials Initiative.

The aim is to help investigators in different countries collaborate more effectively and plan ambitious, practice-changing clinical trials that deliver results successfully. It also helps researchers collaborate on global clinical trials that might not be feasible in a single country or with support from a single funder alone.

Learn more about the GCRFF

Through international cooperation, clinical trials can usually be started and conducted more quickly, they become more affordable and the results are more generalisable. This makes it easier for results to find their way into implementation.

The endorsement of an Expression of Interest (EOI) by the GCRFF is an indication of strong support by the GCRFF members for the proposed trial. Investigators can then seek funding to support the trial through relevant national funding schemes (including those of GCRFF and non GCRFF member funders).

The GCRFF Multinational Clinical Trials Initiative provides a platform that makes it easier to submit a single international clinical trial proposal to multiple funders simultaneously. This enables researchers to enter into international collaborations more effectively and efficiently. At the same time, it allows funders to make early contributions or express interest in a clinical trial. This initiative is therefore not a funding instrument.