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ARE CLINICAL TRIALS FOR YOU? By Ralph Moss, PhD There are currently over 2,300 clinical trials for cancer in the US and abroad. The clinical trials industry, powerfully connected, aggressively recruits patients to join these studies. It often explicitly promotes the idea that clinical trials will benefit those who participate in them. However, a new study shows that in reality cancer patients rarely benefit from participation in such trials. Scientists from Boston's Dana Farber Cancer Institute report that "Despite widespread belief that enrolment in clinical trials leads to improved outcomes in patients with cancer, there are insufficient data to conclude that such a trial effect exists." Writing in this week's Lancet, they explain that participating in a clinical trial is mainly an altruistic act, something a cancer patient does "for improving treatment of future patients," not for enhancing his or her own chances of survival. I'm sure that this will come as a shock to many patients who have been urged to take part in clinical trials. |