A clinical trial is a human research study that aims to provide specific answers about novel treatments, vaccines, or diagnostic techniques, as well as novel applications of currently available medications. Clinical trials are used to evaluate the safety and efficacy of new medications, tests, and treatments. The safest approach to discovering therapies and medicines that benefit people is through careful execution of clinical trials.
New investigational therapies and procedures are tested in the lab and on animals before the most promising ones are brought into human clinical trials. There are various phases of clinical studies. As a trial progresses, more knowledge is learned about the prospective treatment, its dangers, its potential efficacy, and issues relating to quality of life.
What Happens In A Clinical Trial?
Participating in a clinical study could make you one of the first individuals to gain the advantages of a novel therapy. However, it is extremely crucial to examine a clinical trial’s phases before getting into the process.
Testing a new medicine
- To determine if new drugs are safe and effective, all clinical studies go through a number of stages.
- The drugs will typically be evaluated against control, which is a different form of treatment.
- Either a placebo or an established standard treatment will be used in place of this one.
Phase 1 trials
- The medication is administered to a small group of volunteers, some of whom may be healthy.
- For the first time, the medicine is being tested on human participants.
- Researchers examine potential adverse effects and determine what dosage should be used for treatment.
- If participants experience no negative effects or only minimal side effects, researchers only increase the dose after starting with a low amount.
Phase 2 trials
- The new medication is being evaluated on a bigger population of sick people. This is done in order to better understand its immediate consequences.
Phase 3 trials
- Trials are conducted on medications that have successfully completed stages 1 and 2.
- To determine whether the medication is more effective in real-world settings and whether it has significant adverse effects, it is tested on bigger groups of sick individuals and compared to an existing treatment or a placebo.
- Many clinical trials last a year or longer and include thousands of patients.
Phase 4 trials
- While the medication is being used in practice, researchers continue to look into its effectiveness, side effects, and safety.
- Not necessary for all medications.
- This only applied to medications that have completed all prior tests and been granted marketing licences; a licence denotes that the medication is available only with a prescription.
Diseases Clinical Trials Can Treat
Whenever we talk about clinical trials the first thing that comes to mind is cancer clinical research. However, do you know that clinical trials aren’t restricted to cancer? Check the listing mentioned below.
| Serial number | Therapy Area |
| 1 | Cancers |
| 2 | Cardiovascular & Circulatory Diseases |
| 3 | Digestive Diseases |
| 4 | Musculoskeletal Diseases |
| 5 | Infectious Diseases |
| 6 | Endocrinology & Metabolic Disease |
| 7 | Nervous System Diseases |
| 8 | Mental Health & Behavioral Disorders |
| 9 | Respiratory Diseases |
| 10 | Blood Diseases |
| 11 | Blood sugar |
Why Are Clinical Trials Important?
People are now surviving longer thanks to cancer medicines that have been effective in clinical trials in the past. Clinical trials are how doctors decide whether new medicines are safe, efficient, and outperform existing ones. Additionally, they assist us in raising patients’ quality of life both during and after treatment. Participating in a clinical study advances our understanding of cancer and helps future patients receive better cancer care. Clinical trials are essential to developing new cancer treatments here’s why:
Access to the latest therapies
Only clinical trials can provide access to some of the most cutting-edge therapies because of how quickly our knowledge of fatal diseases is developing. Numerous new treatment options from this research are still being studied.
Closer monitoring
Usually, healthcare professionals monitor trial participants more closely than other patients. In-person consultations and a predetermined number of imaging tests are frequently required by the research project itself.
Patients occasionally believe they will be used as “guinea pigs,” yet the contrary is actually true. You’ll have access to a second group of medical professionals who can address your questions and concerns. This is an advantage of participating in a trial. Many people find that more frequent check-ins are comforting because they can see how they’re responding to treatment.
Reduced cost
Patients typically don’t pay for clinical trial medications. Instead, the study team pays for those expenses. However, for the majority of patients, clinical trial therapies are no more expensive than conventional treatments. There may be travel costs or imaging services that the study does not cover.
Make contact with your insurance company and medical staff before enrolling in a trial to estimate your expenses. Social workers and financial counsellors are readily accessible to help you at many cancer centres.
Check here also a leading Hospitals in Bangalore
