The Wellness Community

Cancer Clinical Trials

The Wellness Community is proud to provide this free and confidential clinical trials search engine that offers information about clinical trials currently available throughout the US.

Click here to find a clinical trial
or call 1-800-814-8927

Clinical trials test promising new treatments, seek improvements to current treatments, or aim to detect or prevent cancer recurrence.
Clinical trial participants make an important contribution to the future of cancer care.
After learning more about clinical trials as a viable option, please consult with your doctor about how to get involved. Publication of this search engine is not intended to take the place of medical care or the advice of your doctor.

Made possible through an unrestricted educational grant from

What are Cancer Clinical Trials?

Before a new treatment method for cancer is made available to the public, it must undergo a clinical trial; and any new treatment must successfully complete each of three phases of trials before the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves it for general use.

Phase I trials help researchers determine the best way to give a new treatment (by mouth, injection or IV drip, for instance) and the most appropriate dosage. These trials also establish whether a treatment has any potentially harmful side effects. Only a few people participate in this stage.
Phase II trials evaluate whether the new treatment actually has a positive effect against a particular type of cancer. In general, if at least 20 percent of participants respond well to the treatment, the new therapy undergoes further evaluation.
Phase III trials compare the new treatment to the best existing treatment for a particular type of cancer. If eligible, many people - from the hundreds to even the thousands - can participate. Phase III trials can involve, for example, adding a new drug to an already-proven combination of drugs to see if the combination is more effective. It is important to know that every participant in a Phase III trial receives either the current standard treatment OR the new treatment. People who are eligible for a clinical trial and choose to participate are informed of the possible risks and benefits, and they are protected through laws that value a participant's right to leave the trial at any time.

The Wellness Community is proud to provide this free and confidential clinical trials search engine that offers information about clinical trials currently available throughout the US. Find a clinical trial via this search engine or call 1-800-814-8927

Review the NCI glossary of clinical trial terms

View this video on cancer clinical trials from the National Cancer Institute to learn more about how they work.

Ways to Actively Participate in Your Treatment:

Partner with your physician - Before deciding to enroll in a clinical trial, schedule a meeting to talk with your oncologist. Bring a family member or friend to help you address your questions and concerns.

Find support - Talk with others who have experience with a clinical trial. Your health care team or organizations like The Wellness Community will help connect you with others who can share their experiences.

Educate yourself - There are organizations that provide up-to-date information about what is being studied and whether a cancer clinical trial is right for you. This chart provides some helpful websites with information about specific trials.

National Cancer Institute's PDQ

What is it? Database produced by NCI
Registry of approximately
1,800 active cancer clinical trials

How do I access it? Go to www.cancer.gov
Go to the clinical trials area and follow the search directions OR Call 1-800-4-CANCER

What will it provide? Summaries about clinical trials conducted by NCI-sponsored researchers, the pharmaceutical industry, and some international groups

National Library of Medicine

What is it? Database produced by NIH Registry now lists 4,000 primarily NIH-supported clinical studies on many conditions, and more will be added. All trials on PDQ are listed in this database.

How do I access it? Go to www.clinicaltrials.gov You can browse by disease or sponsor or insert key words.

What will it provide? Summaries about clinical trials for a wide range of conditions—most of the trials listed are sponsored by NIH

The National Coalition for Cancer Cooperative Groups

What is it? Nonprofit organization dedicated to improve the quality of life and survival of cancer patients by increasing participation in cancer clinical trials with services and products. TrialCheck®, developed by the Coalition and winner of the 2008 Consumer Health Award, is the nation’s premier cancer clinical trials navigation and matching service.

How do I access it? Go to www.cancertrialshelp.org/trialcheck. Answer a few basic questions such as patient's zip code, disease type, stage and prior treatment history.

What will it provide? A tailored list of treatment trials is created that is displayed according to distance from zip code entered. Trial information can be easily downloaded for discussion with a physician regarding the potential for enrollment.

University of Pennsylvania’s Oncolink

What is it? This is one of the best and most up-to-date web sites on a host of cancer research topics, including informationabout clinical trials. University of Penn. Partnered with EmergingMed to provide a searchable clinical trials matching service on this website.

How do I access it? Go to www.oncolink.com click “Clinical Trials” on the side bar.

What will it provide? The Trial Matching & Referral Service is designed to provide access to trials at the University of Pennsylvania.

3 sites

Pharmaceutical Resources / Internet Clinical Trial Matching Sites

What are they? Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) publishes a list of new cancer drugs in development.

CenterWatch’s Clinical Trials Listing Service and EmergingMed.com’s clinical trials matching service
list many industry- and Government-sponsored trials.

How do I access them?

PhRMA
Go to http://www.phrma.org Click on “New Medicines in Development” and search by disease. The drugs are listed by cancer type OR Call 202-835-3400.
CenterWatch
Go to www.centerwatch.com Click on “Trial Listings” and then “CenterWatch Trial Listings by Medical Areas" OR Call 617-856-5900.
EmergingMed.com Go to www.emergingmed.com

What will they provide? Descriptions, sites, telephone numbers, and investigator names by State.