Health encyclopaedia

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Clinical trials

If you are undergoing treatment or are about to undergo treatment for a medical condition, you may be asked if you would like to be part of a clinical trial.  You might also be interested in finding out what trials are taking place so you can ask if you can be part of one.

A clinical trial is a research project to test new or different types of treatments or drugs.  The NHS spends millions of pounds on this kind of research every year and there are normally hundreds of trials going on all of the time.

In most trials, a new treatment is compared to the standard treatment for the condition.  If there is no other treatment available, the new treatment is compared to one that should have no effect at all on the condition (known as a placebo).

Clinical trials are always run to a very strict set of rules (known as a ‘protocol’) to ensure that they are as accurate as possible and the results are meaningful.

Before new drug treatments are tested in hospital trials, they will have been through a long period of research testing in laboratories.  It is only when the research shows that drugs or treatments should be effective and not cause too many serious side effects that make it to the stage of hospital trials.

You cannot be entered into a clinical trial without your consent.  The doctor who is organising your treatment will usually talk to you about being involved and should explain all of the risks and possible benefits.Even if you want to be involved in a clinical trial, you may not be able to.  The rules (protocol) for clinical trials are usually very specific about the patients that are suitable to be involved.  If you do not meet the criteria laid down in the protocol, then you cannot be involved.

You should be completely happy with the trial before you give consent.  This may mean taking some time to think about it before you make a decision.  You might want to ask more questions about what will happen and what treatment you will have.  You should be given the time and space to do this.

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