Clinical Research Unit

Sewon Kang, MD, Director

• Therapeutic trials
  Sewon Kang, MD, Yolanda Helfrich, MD, Dana Sachs, MD, John Voorhees, MD
• Therapeutic trials
  Sewon Kang, MD, Yolanda Helfrich, MD, Dana Sachs, MD, John Voorhees, MD
• Antifibrosis and Scleroderma Research
  Sewon Kang, MD, Gary Fisher, PhD, and John Voorhees, MD
• Acne Research
  Sewon Kang, MD, Gary Fisher, PhD, Jeff Orringer, MD, Dana Sachs, MD, and
  John Voorhees, MD
• Antioxidant Effects On Aging Skin Research
  Yolanda Helfrich, MD, Sewon Kang, MD, Gary Fisher, PhD, and John Voorhees, MD
• Rosacea Research
  Yolanda Helfrich, MD, Sewon Kang, MD, Gary Fisher, PhD, and John Voorhees, MD
• Stretch Mark Research
  Sewon Kang, MD, Yolanda Helfrich, MD, Gary Fisher, PhD, and John Voorhees, MD

The Clinical Research Unit (CRU) was established by Dr. John Voorhees in the 1970s, and has been directed by Dr. Sewon Kang since 1993. Under his leadership and with support from Dr. Voorhees, the CRU has grown in size and developed into one of the most revered and outstanding clinical / translational research enterprises in dermatology. The CRU is located adjacent to the Department of Dermatology's medical clinics and to the Cosmetic Dermatology and Laser Center on the first floor of the Taubman Center. It is a self-contained program within Dermatology that also utilizes when necessary the outpatient and inpatient facilities of the NIH-funded University of Michigan Clinical Research Center (CRC). A fully-equipped medical photographic studio housed in the unit allows for high-quality, reproducible clinical photography (film and digital image capture). Equipped to conduct all phases (I-IV) of clinical trials, the CRU has been instrumental in the development of many dermatologic drugs used today.

The infrastructure created under Dr. Kang's directorship allows efficient and precise acquisition of study volunteers' skin and or blood, with seamless transport of study specimens to the appropriate laboratories. In addition to conducting therapeutic trials for pharmaceutical industry, the unit has been engaged in numerous protocols supported by the NIH and other extramural programs. Currently the CRU operates with 4 MDs, 4 MD fellows, 1 research nurse, 2.5 study coordinators, 1 professional medical photographer, 1 biostatistician, and 1 regulatory liaison. A data management and data quality assurance program actively monitors ongoing studies, and the unit maintains a liaison with the IRB, the CRC and the FDA. Many clinical protocols are in place, which address psoriasis pathophysiology & genetics, acne, stretch marks, photoaging, UV skin damage and pharmacological approaches to skin repair. Work from the CRU has been published in the New England Journal of Medicine, Nature, Nature Medicine, the Journal of Clinical Investigation, the Journal of the American Medical Association, the Journal of Experimental Medicine, and many peer reviewed dermatological journals.