We are continuing to keep in touch with the participants in the study. It may be that we are in touch with you by a different method than usual (for example we may telephone you to complete questionnaires, rather than send them by post). If you have any questions about the study, please email cgall@abdn.ac.uk.
You can also find information about COVID-19 from the NHS websites in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
There is also information about COVID-19 on the UK government website.
C-Gall is a research study to find the most effective treatment for gallstones.
Gallstone disease is one of the most common gastrointestinal (stomach) conditions in the UK; around 1 in 10 adults will have/present with gallstones. Surgery for gallstones has increased steadily, showing a rise in the number of cases of gallstones and the increased use of surgery to remove the gallbladder as the treatment of choice.
The most common early symptom of gallstone disease is pain. Surgery is most often used to treat symptomatic gallstones. However the rates of developing surgical complications can be 1 in 10 to 1 in 15 people. In addition, removing the gallbladder is not 100% effective in treating symptoms, as one third of patients may continue to experience pain and abdominal symptoms after surgery. The C-Gall study hopes to find out whether a non-surgical approach (medical management) would be better for some patients.
Medical management, including advice on diet and use of analgesia (pain relief) may be a more effective option in people presenting with uncomplicated disease (depending on their age, clinical presentation, and symptoms).
If you would like to be involved in C-Gall, please contact the C-Gall study office and we can advise you if your local hospital is participating in the study and put you in touch with a member of the team to discuss further (01224 438089 or cgall@abdn.ac.uk).
The C-Gall study is funded by the National Institute for Health Research HTA programme. You can find out more about taking part in research here: http://www.nihr.ac.uk/get-involved/ok-to-ask.htm
You may be eligible to take part in C-Gall if:
If you would like any more information about C-Gall, including information about taking part please contact the study office at the University of Aberdeen on 01224 438089 or email cgall@abdn.ac.uk.
If you are eligible and would like to take part in the C-Gall study you will be recruited at your local hospital (please see ‘Where can I take part? to check if your local hospital is participating).
To take part you will be asked to sign a consent form and asked some questions about your health. You will also be asked to complete a study questionnaire. After this you will be randomised to receive either medical management or surgical management.
We will follow your progress for 18 months and we will send you a study questionnaire through the post at 3, 9, 12 and 18 months. We will also send you a prepaid envelope. The questionnaires are returned to the study office in a prepaid envelope.
University of Aberdeen/NHS Grampian is the sponsor for this study based in the United Kingdom. We will be using information from you and your medical records in order to undertake this study and will act as the data controller for this study. This means that we are responsible for looking after your information and using it properly. University of Aberdeen/NHS Grampian will keep identifiable information about you at least 10 years after the study has finished.
Your rights to access, change or move your information are limited, as we need to manage your information in specific ways in order for the research to be reliable and accurate. If you withdraw from the study, we will keep the information about you that we have already obtained. To safeguard your rights, we will use the minimum personally-identifiable information possible.
You can find out more about how we use your information https://www.abdn.ac.uk/privacy.