Understanding Clinical Trials

Clinical trials are the last step in a long research process

Clinical trials for cancer aim to identify novel ways to prevent and treat cancer, find and diagnose cancer, and manage symptoms of cancer and side effects from its treatment. Trials begin within a lab testing various treatments on animals to ensure they are safe enough to be tested in people. Through clinical trials, doctors determine whether new treatments are safe and effective, and whether they work better than current treatments.

Reasons patients may wish to participate in a clinical trial can include, among others:

• Accessing treatments that are not yet available to the public
• Contributing to medical research that can help others
• Receiving expert care from specialized cancer programs

Patients with cancer can participate in a clinical trial at any time, regardless of whether they have metastatic disease or not. However, clinical trials often exclude patients with CNS metastasis. But the status quo is changing, and more often we are seeing trials that accommodate patients with CNS disease at different points in their treatment.

If you are interested in exploring this option, check out our clinical trial search tool designed specifically for patients with brain or leptomeningeal metastasis from breast cancer. Additionally, you can review our frequently asked questions to learn more about what questions you can ask your doctor.