If I want to participate in a clinical trial, how do I find out what to do? Where is there information on clinical trials for mesothelioma?
If you are being treated at a mesothelioma treatment center, your doctor probably knows about the ongoing trials, and may in fact be one of the physicians involved in clinical trials. Your doctor is the first person you should ask.
The American Cancer Society helps connect patients to TrialCheck®, a database about clinical trials maintained by the Coalition of Cancer Cooperative Groups. You can get information by going to the American Cancer Society website at www.cancer.org and then clicking on “Find a Clinical Trial.” Or you can call their toll-free number, 1-800-303-5691. The direct website of
TrialCheck® is http://www.cancertrialshelp.org/patientsCaregivers/patientsCaregivers.jsp
You enter information about yourself, the stage of your cancer, what treatment, if any, you have received, where you live and how you are feeling, among other things. It is actually a very short questionnaire. At the end you will get a list of clinical trials that might be right for you. For mesothelioma, you must first select cancer of the lung. You will then get a list of lung cancers and can select mesothelioma.
You can also search for trials from the National Cancer Society’s website at: http://www.cancer.gov/clinicaltrials/search/ You will also have to fill out a short questionnaire.