In total, about 15,000 patients will be screened at more than 650 institutions. Out of this pool, researchers plan to enroll about 6,000 patients. As many as 400 medical institutions nationwide are participating in the study, which plans to eventually enroll more than 22,000 postmenopausal women at high risk for the disease. A Primer on Clinical Trials Clinical trials are research studies conducted with people. Many trials try to find better ways to prevent or treat diseases, while others test new ways to detect or diagnose a disease.
Participants take part in clinical trials for many reasons.
Usually, they hope for a cure and for a way to contribute to a research effort that may help others. Also, participants in a clinical trial are among the first to receive the new treatments before they are widely available. The care they receive is always the best available. Phase II - Tests to see if the treatment works against cancer. Phase III - Compares the effectiveness of the new treatment against a standard treatment.