What information will the researchers collect before I can go on a clinical trial?
- Your age, overall health, any other illness (diabetes, heart disease), medications you take
- Your insurance, general finances, transportation, family
- Current symptoms related to your cancer
- Any treatment you may have had for your cancer before
- Childbearing status and protection (use of condoms, birth control pills) if of childbearing age
- Studies on your blood such as:
- Red and white blood cell levels, number of platelets
- Tests to see how your liver and kidneys are working
- Review of tumor pathology to verify type and size of the tumor, as well as other information about the how the tumor may grow or spread
- X-rays and other scans (PET, MRI, CT) to show if there is any spread of the tumor to another place
- If the tumor has spread, where and how much it has spread
- May look at your current quality of life by asking you questions
- Your ability to follow the requirements of the study
- To travel to the treatment site
- To report symptoms
- Your current knowledge about your cancer and treatment
- The type of information you will need to take part in the study such as
- Keep a study diary
- Eat special foods
- Record important information to tell your provider
What type of information will the researchers be collecting during a clinical trial?
- Side effects
- Upset stomach (mild, moderate, severe?)
- Occasional vomiting or vomiting every hour
- Blood counts, such as
- how many white cells
- white blood cells help you fight infection
- how many red cells
- red blood cells carry oxygen for your body to work
- how is your liver working
- Appearance (cosmetic outcome, like a lot of scarring on the breasts)
- How easy or difficult it is for
- You to do what is required for the treatment.
- Your provider and the clinic to do what is required in the study.
- Your overall quality of life while you are going through treatment.
- Whether there were any delays in you getting your treatment
- Maybe you had a low white blood cell count and they decided to wait a week to treat you so that your white blood cell count would be higher
- Maybe you had low white blood cell counts and the dose of your drug had to be reduced
- Are you getting the dosages of medicine you are supposed to receive according to the study?
- Whether you have any other or unexpected problems
- How your cancer is responding to the treatment
- You responses to any special things you need to do while on the treatment such as eating a special diet.
- Any changes in other diseases, finances, ability to take part.
What information will the researchers collect after I have finished the clinical trial?
- Your overall quality of life after you have finished your treatment.
- Delayed side effects (not being able to get pregnant)
- Whether or not you have a recurrence of your cancer or your cancer has spread
- Have you had appropriate follow-up (to schedule and keep your appointments)
- What new medical conditions have you been diagnosed with since your treatment was completed?
- Appearance (cosmetic outcome, like a lot of scarring on the breasts)
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