A clinical trial is a rigorously controlled type of research study that uses volunteers to test new methods of screening, prevention, diagnosis or treatment of a disease. Clinical trials help to move basic scientific research from the laboratory into treatments for people. The goal of the trial is to find better ways to treat cancer and help cancer patients. Clinical trials test many types of treatment such as new drugs, new approaches to radiation therapy or new combinations of treatments.

Clinical trials are important to progress the “war on cancer.” Increased participation in clinical trials means that researchers can complete the trial more quickly and speed the development of new trials. If a new treatment proves effective in a clinical trial, it may become a new standard treatment that can help many patients. Most of today’s most effective standard treatments are based on previous clinical trial results. For example, successful clinical trials have:

• Increased survival rates of participants with testicular cancer, breast cancer, leukemia and lymphoma
• Decreased morbidity associated with the surgical treatment of many cancers
• Resulted in the development of new compounds and techniques to reduce the side effects of cancer therapies