Clinical Trial Connect

Inspiration

The idea for Clinical Trial Connect was born out of the growing gap between medical research and patient access. We noticed how difficult it is for patients—especially those with chronic, rare, or idiopathic conditions—to find clinical trials they may be eligible for. Many patients lack the medical literacy or time to navigate clinicaltrials.gov, and researchers struggle to recruit participants. We wanted to build a tool that connects these dots by enabling clinicians, patients, and researchers to collaborate more easily and ethically.

What it does

Clinical Trial Connect is a web platform that matches patients with updated eligible clinical trials based on their medical data. Researchers upload study protocols and eligibility criteria, while clinicians input simplified patient profiles (lab results, diagnoses, symptoms). The platform automatically suggests matching trials, which clinicians can review before sharing with the patient. Patients can view layman-friendly trial descriptions, ethical information, and contact details to decide whether they want to participate. Researchers can view anonymized patient data and proceed with enrollment once consent is received.

How we built it

We built the application using a modern full-stack architecture:

• React with TailwindCSS for a responsive, clean UI

Challenges we ran into

• Parsing complex eligibility criteria: Trial protocols vary widely in language and structure, so we had to simplify and normalize input formats for consistency.
• Balancing privacy and access: Ensuring patient data privacy while allowing researchers to review necessary information was a constant focus.
• Designing for multiple user types: Creating an intuitive experience for clinicians, researchers, and patients required thoughtful UX design.
• Medical terminology translation: Presenting study details in layman’s terms without oversimplifying the science was tricky but necessary for patient comprehension.

Accomplishments that we’re proud of

• Created a functioning prototype that automatically matches patient data to trial criteria
• Built an intuitive clinician workflow for quick patient profile creation
• Developed a clean, accessible patient interface that explains study options clearly
• Designed with ethical participation and patient autonomy at the core

What we learned

• How to architect a system with multiple user roles and strict data access control
• The importance of user-centric design when building healthcare tools
• The complexities of clinical trial workflows and regulatory considerations
• How structured medical data can enable scalable, impactful applications

What’s next for Clinical Trial Connect

• Integrate AI models to auto-tag prognoses
• Partner with hospitals and research institutions to pilot the platform
• Explore integrations with EHR systems to streamline clinician workflows

Built With

• bolt
• react
• tailwind