Much of the progress in cancer treatment has come about through the use of clinical research trials.
Clinical trials are research studies designed to evaluate new cancer treatments.
They are planned programs of treatment using human subjects and accepted scientific methods. Trials may be run by individual hospitals, groups of hospitals working together in cooperative fashion, and by pharmaceutical companies in cooperation with the hospitals. Many clinical trials require that the patient have had no previous treatment, but there are often others that are offered to those who have failed to respond to previous treatment. A protocol is the written plan for the clinical trial. It includes the reasoning behind the study, the goals of the study, the requirements that will allow a patient to participate in the study, the risks and benefits to the patient participating in the study, and a detailed description of the treatment involved and how the results will be measured.