JUL 20, 2023

Clinical Trial Overview: Types of Studies Used to Assess New Cancer Therapies

WRITTEN BY: Katie Kokolus

We often discuss clinical trials, research studies that evaluate the efficacy of new medical approaches.  Necessary for both improving healthcare and advancing medicine, clinical trials make up a vital part of the medical process.  Here, we will begin a series of articles to provide an overview of the clinical trial process, which will help you understand all the exciting studies you read about!

Doctors and researchers use clinical trials to develop new drugs to treat cancer (or other diseases).  What may be a surprise is that not all clinical trials aim to cure disease; some work to improve the quality of life for patients living with an illness.  Clinical trials can also help us improve screening and diagnostic methods.  Additionally, some clinical trials access new approaches for preventing disease. 

Arguably the most crucial component of any clinical trial is the volunteers.  Clinical trial participants may have the disease in question, but this isn’t always the case because some clinical trials rely on healthy volunteers. 

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) recognizes five different types of clinical trials:

Stay tuned next week to learn about the sequential steps, known as phases, by which clinical trials progress. 

 

Sources: J Clin Oncol, J Nutr, Annals Oncol, Ther Adv Med Oncol, Adv Protein Chem