TARGET Protocol Extractor Launch Page
This is the main launch page to the latest version of an AI-powered Claude tool that analyzes published observational studies against the TARGET 2025 reporting guideline (Cashin et al. 2025) for target trial emulation.
While the AI-powered Target Trial Design Assistant helps you design a new target trial emulation following the TARGET 2025 guidelines, this tool helps you evaluate existing papers. Upload a PDF or provide a DOI/PMCID/PMID, and it will extract the study’s implicit or explicit target trial protocol into a structured table, assess compatibility with the TARGET framework, and provide a methodological critique organized around the TARGET checklist.
This tool was developed alongside our review of tools for supporting target trial emulations (van Hal, Bernstam, and Johnson 2025), which showed a gap in support for critical evaluation of published TTE studies — specifically, assessing whether they clearly specify the causal question, study design, and identifying assumptions.
Key features:
- Extracts a structured protocol table mapping all TARGET checklist items
- Detects index trials (e.g., NCT numbers) and automatically looks them up on ClinicalTrials.gov
- Flags incompatible study designs (case-control, IV/MR, DiD, etc.)
- Supports balanced or aggressive critique modes
- Allows follow-up questions for iterative refinement
- Exports results as Markdown or Word
This page will always link to the latest version of the tool. Claude changes the URL for each version, so it is best to bookmark this page.
Once you click below, you will be asked to log in to Claude.ai. You must have a paid account to use the tool and your usage counts against your credit.
Please provide feedback at the GitHub repo: https://github.com/tjohnson250/Target-Protocol-Extractor
or by emailing me at todd.r.johnson@uth.tmc.edu
Important: Each time the tool is updated Anthropic creates a new link, the old one never goes away. If you want to return to your work bookmark the link you used to start, but for the latest version, bookmark this page.