Clinical trials are often the best option in Oncology

People frequently wonder about the safety of participating in a clinical trial, but for cancer patients, this option is often the best choice available. Dr. Fernando Rivera, Head of Medical Oncology at Valdecilla Hospital (Santander, Spain), explains it this way:
 
“Clinical trials are not only valuable for society—being the only way to advance cancer treatments and translate basic scientific discoveries into real benefits for patients—but they also directly benefit the participants. Patients in clinical trials gain access to cutting-edge treatments long before they become widely available outside the trial setting.”
 
“It’s important to understand that developing a new cancer drug is a lengthy process. From the initial laboratory studies to the first use in patients within a clinical trial, it typically takes 3 to 5 years. Then, from the start of clinical trials through all development phases (I, II, and III) until the drug is approved for routine use, another 5 to 10 years may pass.”
 
“During those years when the drug is still under investigation, the only way to access it is through a clinical trial. In many cases, this represents the best therapeutic option we can offer patients.”
 
Source: Statements by Dr. Fernando Rivera to the Cantabria College of Physicians
 

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