What is a Clinical Trial

A clinical trial is a research study that follows specific steps and guidelines in which the results and findings are collected and measured for use in future medical protocols. The benefits of participating in a clinical trial are that it enables patients to actively manage their health, access new and previously unavailable treatments or medicines and contribute to medical science.

Who Can Participate

Anyone can participate in a clinical trial however, each clinical trial has a strict set of guidelines and protocols that must be followed for the study to be beneficial. Those guidelines and protocols can include age, gender, disease type and stage of a disease, previous treatment history, and other medical conditions. These are published at the outset of each trial and candidates that fit the stated criteria are selected to become study participants.

If you are selected to participate you will be compensated to offset the time and effort required to fulfill the study requirements. Patients who participate in a clinical trial are not charged for any medications or treatments that they receive during the process of the clinical trial. However, participants need to understand this is not a clinical medical treatment program. Any diseases or illnesses outside of the study guidelines that require medical attention will need to be treated by your primary care physician.

What to Expect During a Clinical Trial

The process varies with each clinical trial however, typically there is a team of doctors, nurses and other health care professionals that interact with the study participants to conduct the trial. The team will advise the participants of the specific trial instructions, tests, medications and treatments to be administered, conduct periodic check-ups to monitor the process and compile the data.

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