There are two types of costs associated with a clinical trial: patient care costs and research costs.
Patient care costs are those costs related to treating your cancer, whether you are in a cancer research trial or receiving standard therapy. These costs are often covered by health insurance and usual copays and coinsurance would apply. Doctor visits, hospital stays, standard cancer treatment, lab tests, and imaging tests are considered patient care costs.
Research costs are those related to taking part in the trial. Often these costs are not covered by health insurance but are usually covered by the research trial’s sponsor. Study drugs, as well as, additional lab and/or imaging tests performed solely for the trial are examples of research costs.
When you take part in a clinical trial, you may have extra doctor visits that you would not have with standard treatment. During these visits, your cancer care team carefully watches for side effects and your safety in the study. These extra visits can add costs for transportation and child care.