Dear Engage Montreal participants,
We are notifying you of a change in one of the Engage substudies, Engage-HPV. As a participant in Engage, you were given the opportunity to consent to participating in Engage-HPV. If you opted in to participating in this substudy, you provided consent and additional specimens including an oral specimen that was collected using mouthwash and an anal specimen collected using a swab. These specimens were sent to the Centre hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal (CHUM) for human papillomavirus (HPV) testing. As HPV testing is not approved for diagnostic purposes, no individual results were provided but results on the Engage study can be found here https://www.engage-men.ca/our-work/articles/.
The lab your specimens were stored in at CHUM is closing due to the director’s retirement. In order to minimize risks due to transport and maintain the integrity of your specimens, we have made arrangements to transfer and store the specimens at the Research Institute McGill University Health Centre. They will be stored at the lab of Dr. Shuk On Annie Leung, an experienced HPV researcher, and co-Investigator on the Engage-HPV substudy. We will maintain the same privacy restrictions, the specimens will remain anonymous and lab staff will not have access to Engage participant information. Please note that you do not need to do anything if you would like for your specimens to remain in the study. If you would like more information, or to opt out of the Engage-HPV substudy, please contact Engage-HPV study coordinator Anna Yeung at anna.yeung@unityhealth.to or at 416-864-6060 x 77445.
Thank you to all who participated in Engage Montréal. Through your participation, you have contributed to a portrait of sexual health and well-being of gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (GBM) in the Montréal area.
Our team will continue to work with the data we’ve collected for future publications and presentations. We encourage you to follow the work of Engage by visiting this webpage, where you can find information on new publications and presentations of study results, news items, infographics, technical summaries, and our participation in some upcoming community events! You can also subscribe to our newsletter for updates as our work continues.
Please note that as of February 2023, the Engage Montréal team will no longer be present at the study site SPOT (1223A Atateken Street, Montréal, QC H2L 3K9) and our telephone numbers will no longer be active. To contact us, feel free to email us at: engagemontreal@gmail.com.
The first publication by Engage Montreal
If you have questions concerning the research project or if you have a problem you think may be related to your participation in the research project, you may communicate with the principal investigators:
Dr. Joseph Cox (514-528-2400 x3630)
Dr. Gilles Lambert (514-528-2400 x3802)
For any question concerning your rights as a research participant, comment or complaint, you may communicate with the MUHC Office of the Ombudsman.
email : ombudsman@muhc.mcgill.ca
phone: 514-934-1934 x35655
