What Are Clinical Trials? An Introduction
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Clinical trials give you, the patient, a chance to try a new treatment. By taking part in a trial, you also help us develop new and better ways to treat and care for others around the world. We can also develop methods to prevent disease and manage symptoms.
You may be looking for clinical trial information because:
- Your doctor recommended a specific trial
- You want to join a study because a current treatment isn't working
- Before you begin standard treatment, you want to see what's new
- You aren't ill, but want to join a study for healthy people
- You know someone who's ill and want to see what's available
To join one of our studies, you don't have to be a UVA patient.
You also don't have to be out of options. You can join a study as part of standard care.
Need more information? Check our clinical trials FAQs. You can also see our list of clinical trial terminology.
What is a Clinical Trial?
It takes years to develop a new drug, medication, therapy, device, or technique. Researchers perform tests several times, over and over, to see if they work and if they're safe for humans.
Treatments have to meet certain criteria in order to be given to patients in clinical settings.
Helping Research
When you participate in a clinical trial, it helps researchers find out if a particular drug or therapy is safe and effective.
Kim Bullock, PhD: At the time, there was no approved therapy for my child�s condition. So, we found out about some research that was going on at UVA, and that there was an opportunity for her to enroll in a clinical study. We met with the investigator and the clinical research coordinator a few times before we enrolled to go over the consent form and everything that was going to be done in the trial. And throughout the trial, they were wonderful to us and our family.
Jeanine Staples, MD: As a provider, a healthcare provider, our goal is to provide evidence-based medicine, and clinical research, and clinical trials provides the evidence that we seek. And so, identifying what works and what doesn�t work, and then ultimately, what works better, and what works best so that we can help to move our field forward and provide good care to patients so that they can have better outcomes.
Max Luna, MD, FACC:
Patients that are invited to participate in research should have clarity that, one, it�s a voluntary participation. Two, it�s confidential. Three, that they can withdraw at any time of the research project. And four, that it would not impact their care at UVA regarding the standard medical care.
Michael Devitt, MD : A Phase I clinical trial is usually representative of many years, if not a decade, of work being done before that drug even gets to the patient. And I think that that�s the difference, is that it�s not like we�re just picking some new chemical out of a vial and saying, let�s just see what happens. A lot of, a lot of work goes into that.
Randy Jones, PhD, RN, FAAN : We need to have a diverse sample within any of our clinical trials so that we can better understand what are the treatments that may work or not work for particular groups. It�s important for people to understand that having a diverse sample, being that it could be within gender, race, ethnicity, culture, geographical location. It really helps us to really be informed of the different types of interventions that we can provide for others.
Kim Bullock, PhD: Even though the treatment may or may not have helped her, we would be able to get information from the trail that would help researchers and scientists go on to study, and hopefully develop, a treatment for her condition for other children who are going through the same thing.
Max Luna, MD, FACC : If you have additional questions about clinical research by UVA, you can go to uvahealth.com and find out about the clinical trials that our health system is participating in.
Before You Join a Clinical Study
Ask your doctor all of your questions. Find out what risks you face, as well as the benefits.
Know that:
- You're aren't a guinea pig; you only have to be in the trial if you want to
- You can leave the trial whenever you want
Clinical Trials for Cancer Differ
In some clinical trials, people don't get the drug being tested. They get a placebo, which doesn't have anything in it. Cancer clinical trials are different. While you might not get the drug the trial is studying, you’ll get the same treatment your doctor would prescribe anyway.
Learn more about clinical trials. Read:
ResearchMatch: Connect With Clinical Trials
ResearchMatch helps connect you with the right clinical trials for you and your family. Researchers use ResearchMatch to find good candidates to participate in their clinical research. Anyone in the U.S. can join.
Join ResearchMatch