There are many types of clinical trials, each designed to answer different clinical research questions and improve outcomes for people at every stage of the cancer experience.
This is done by testing an intervention, which can be a treatment, procedure or other action taken to prevent or treat disease or to improve health in other ways.
On the Victorian Cancer Trials Link (VCTL), we have grouped clinical trials into the following categories related to the purpose of the study.
Cancer treatment trials
Clinical trials in this group involve the delivery of an intervention for the treatment of cancer. They look at whether the treatment works and if it causes side effects. Examples of treatments that may be tested include: systemic medicines or drugs (such as chemotherapy, immunotherapy, targeted therapies, hormone therapy or other medicines), radiation therapy, medical devices, or surgical procedures.
Treatment trials are usually run in stages, which are called phases. A new intervention or treatment is tested at each phase to determine if it safe and effective.
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Cancer prevention trials
Cancer prevention clinical trials are trying to work out ways to lower the risk of cancer. Researchers may be studying interventions like medicines, education programs, changes to lifestyle (such as diet and exercise) or other factors. These studies involve people who don’t have cancer, such as people who have a higher risk of developing cancer or the general population as a whole.
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Diagnostic trials
Diagnostic studies include trials seeking easier and more accurate ways to screen for, detect or diagnose cancer. This includes tests, scans or procedures, for example. Prognosis trials are also considered diagnostic, and may be evaluating ways to better determine the stage of someone’s cancer.
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Side effect and wellbeing trials
Clinical trials in this group are trying to find ways to better support people with cancer by addressing their side effects, symptoms or quality of life. These include supportive care and palliative care studies. Researchers may be trying to improve the side effects of cancer or cancer treatment, such as pain, fatigue or anxiety.
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Education, training & system changes
These clinical trials are looking for new ways to deliver cancer care better. They include training programs and education for doctors, nurses, and other health professionals, so they can provide the best support to patients. Researchers are also testing improvements to the systems that help care teams work together – such as better communication and coordination – so patients receive more organised and connected care.
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Long-term follow-up studies
Long-term follow-up studies are research studies that continue to monitor participants for an extended period after the main part of the clinical trial has finished. Researchers often want to know how safe and effective the intervention or treatment remains over time, and understand its long-term benefits.
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What are open-label or double-blind studies?
Some randomised controlled trials use blinding so that those involved can’t tell the difference between the two types of interventions. This is most common in cancer treatment trials.
In a blinded study, the participants don’t know which arm of the study they are in. This means they don’t know which intervention or treatment they are receiving. Blinding aims to reduce bias in the reporting of benefits and side effects.
If you don’t know which treatment you’re having, the results are less likely to be influenced by you or your doctor’s views. For example, if you or your doctor know you were having the experimental treatment, you might report feeling better than you actually are because you believe you are having a more effective treatment.
Blinding is not necessary when the control and experimental treatments are noticeably different – for example, it would be difficult to hide a surgery from the participant.
In a double-blind study, neither the participants nor the research team know who is receiving the experimental or control treatment. In this case, the researchers only discover who is in each arm of the study at the end of the trial when the results are being analysed.
In an open-label study, both the participants and the research team know which arm the participants are in.