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clinical trials

undertreatment2012
Posts: 126
Joined: Mar 2012
Apr 12, 2012 - 11:45 am

since I am new I don't understand a lot of things. My Dr is suggesting clinical trials. Can someone explain what this means? I am the one disappointed in my onc, and he simply mentioned it and left the room. Later it occurred to me what he said.

whiterose
Posts: 89
 Joined: Jan 2012
Apr 16, 2012 - 12:00 pm
Trials

Is your current treatment not working? Or is he suggesting a clinical trial down the road? I'm finding out by reading on the Internet that a lot of doctors aren't as up-to-speed on what clinical trials are available, that in many cases it's up to the patient to find out info. about them on our own.

If your doctor is suggesting a clinical trial in lieu of conventional treatment, I would seek a second opinion.....
carolenk's picture
carolenk
Posts: 917
 Joined: Feb 2011
Apr 16, 2012 - 1:58 pm
A different opinion

I can't say WHY your doctor brought up the subject of a clinical trial for you, undertreatment. Before I jumped ship, I would ask the doctor "why?" as he might be heading up a clinical trial himself and feels it might be a good idea for you. Knowing that you have clear cell OVCA, it really doesn't surprise me that the subject of clinical trials came up early in your treatment plan. Maybe he wants you to start looking for a "back up plan" just in case you need one.

Before your next visit with your oncologist, you may want to become familiar with the various phases of clinical trials so you can ask appropriate questions. The Phase I trials are the most "experimental" and most people don't even get into a Phase I trial unless they are completely out of options.

Some of the clinical trials will not accept you if you have done more than three different chemos. So that is another consideration. Sometimes, ovarian cancer patients are given a chemo that has been shown to be effective along with ANOTHER chemo that isn't approved for ovarian cancer to see if the "cocktail" is more effective.

Another possibility is that the patient is given a standard of care chemo along with a targeted therapy. This is how Avastin (bevicizumab) came to be used for ovarian cancer. A lot of women refer to Avastin as "c