Rent 9780982321973 | Cancer Clinical Trials : A Commonsense Guide to Experimental Cancer Therapies and Clinical Trials | Tomasz M. Beer M.D. and Larry W. Axmaker Ed.D. @knetbooks.com

Summary Table of Contents Author Biography

The definitive guide for anyone considering therapeutic options in addition to standard cancer therapy. It will help readers decide if a clinical trial is a good option for them, to choose an appropriate trial, and to navigate through the clinical trial process. Includes lists of questions to ask, things to look for, things to watch out for, places to look for information. It is written in the context that cancer treatment can broadly be divided into two broad categories: standard care, which involves regular, approved treatments, and exper... MORE

Preface	p. xv
Introduction	p. xvii
Cancer and Cancer Treatment Basics
What Is Cancer and How Is It Treated?	p. 3
What Is Cancer?	p. 3
The Six Hallmarks of Cancer	p. 4
The Three Mainstays of Cancer Treatment	p. 5
Surgery	p. 6
Radiation Therapy	p. 8
Medical Therapy (Medications)	p. 9
E... MORE	p. 14
The Bottom Line	p. 17
What Are Clinical Trials and How Are They Organized?
What Is a Clinical Trial?	p. 21
A Brief History of Clinical Trials	p. 21
Dr. Lind's Plan	p. 22
Modern Medicine	p. 22
The Key Ingredients of a Clinical Trial	p. 23
Clinical Trials Versus Standard Care	p. 25
The Eligibility Checklist Process	p. 26
Informed Consent	p. 27
Information About You	p. 28
Statistics in Clinical Trials	p. 28
What Is Risk Reduction?	p. 29
What Is a Survival Benefit?	p. 31
What Does "Significant" Mean?	p. 32
The Bottom Line	p. 34
The Types of Clinical Trials: Four Phases and More	p. 35
Phase I: Safety Testing	p. 36
Blood Level Studies	p. 37
Variations of Phase I Testing	p. 38
The Biologically Effective Dose	p. 39
Why Would You Want to Participate in a Phase I Study?	p. 40
Phase II: Initial Efficacy Testing: Does the New Drug Work?	p. 40
Types of Phase II Studies	p. 41
What's in a Phase II Study for You?	p. 41
Phase III Trials: The New Treatment Compared to Standard Care	p. 42
Why Would You Volunteer for a Phase III Clinical Trial?	p. 43
Phase IV Studies	p. 44
What's in a Phase TV Study for You?	p. 44
Phase 0 (Zero) Studies	p. 45
A Word About Other Types of Studies	p. 45
Why Would You Consider Participating in a Clinical Trial That Doesn't Involve a Treatment Intended to Directly Treat Cancer?	p. 46
The Bottom Line: The Advantages and Disadvantages of Various Types of Clinical Trials	p. 46
Randomized Trials and Placebos	p. 49
Randomization: Letting the Computer Decide	p. 49
Randomization in Today's Clinical Trials	p. 50
Comparing Active Treatment to No Treatment	p. 51
Blinding and Placebos	p. 52
Benefits Can Be Hard to See Without Blinding	p. 54
The Appropriate Role of Placebos in Clinical Trials	p. 55
The Placebo Effect	p. 56
Placebos in History	p. 57
Why Are Randomized Trials So Large?	p. 58
What Happens If a Study Shows a Benefit Even Before It Is Finished?	p. 58
Did I Get the Best Treatment?	p. 59
How Can I Be Sure I Get the New Treatment?	p. 60
The Bottom Line	p. 62
Clinical Trials That Have Changed Cancer Care	p. 65
Surgery Cures More Women with Breast Cancer When Supported by Chemotherapy	p. 66
When Less May Be More	p. 67
Does Surgery Really Help Men with Prostate Cancer?	p. 68
A Sum That Is Truly Better Than Its Parts: Combining Chemotherapy Drugs	p. 68
Location, Location, Location	p. 69
A Successful Revolution: Targeting Mutations That Cause Cancer	p. 70
Hormones and Cancer Prevention	p. 71
Boost Your Immune System	p. 72
Debunking a Medical Bias	p. 73
When Our Basic Beliefs Are Challenged	p. 74
The Next Breakthrough Study-What Will it Be?	p. 75
The Bottom Line	p. 75
Deciding Whether to Participate in a Clinical Trial
Is There a Clinical Trial That's Right for Me?	p. 79
Deciding Whether to Participate in a Clinical Trial	p. 79
What Should You Know Before Choosing a Clinical Trial?	p. 80
What Potential Benefits and Risks Should You Consider Before Choosing a Clinical Trial?	p. 80
The Effects of Attitudes, Emotions, and Reality in Choosing a Clinical Trial	p. 81
"I Just Want to Be Left Alone!"	p. 82
Cancer Support Groups	p. 83
Choosing the Right Trial for Your Needs	p. 84
I'm Interested. What Do I Do Next?	p. 84
Start Close to Home	p. 85
Know Your Disease State, Stage, and Prior and Current Treatments	p. 85
Searching Online-The Basics	p. 86
Advanced Searches	p. 88
I've Done My Homework…Now What?	p. 90
The Bottom Line	p. 92
Who Is Looking Out for You and What Can You Expect?	p. 93
How Are Studies Overseen and Regulated?	p. 93
The Power of the FDA	p. 94
Not One, but Two Animal Tests!	p. 95
Truly Independent, Ail-Powerful Oversight: The Data Safely Monitoring Board	p. 95
What Can I Expect From My Doctor and Investigative Team?	p. 97
What If I Have Concerns and I'm Not Sure Where to Go for an Answer?	p. 98
Am I Free to Quit If I Want To?	p. 98
What If I Have Side Effects? How Will I Know If I Should Be Concerned?	p. 99
What If Something Goes Wrong?	p. 100
How Do You Get Through the Red Tape?	p. 100
Why Are There Delays?	p. 101
A Concern You May Have: "If I Start a Clinical Trial, and the Trial Medications Don't Work, I Could Be Wasting Valuable Time."	p. 102
The Bottom Line	p. 105
Who Pays for Clinical Trials-And What Can They Cost?	p. 107
What Costs Are Involved in Clinical Trials?	p. 108
Who Pays for These Costs?	p. 108
Costs of Your Care and Insurance Coverage of Cancer Clinical Trials	p. 109
Medicare Comes Through	p. 111
Traditional Health Insurance	p. 114
The Bottom Line	p. 121
Medical Treatment of Cancer Now, and in the Future
Cancer Drugs Currently in Use and Being Tested in Trials	p. 125
Chemotherapy Drugs	p. 125
Antimetabolites	p. 127
Alkylating Agents	p. 128
DNA Cross-Linking Platinum Derivatives	p. 128
Antitumor Antibiotics	p. 129
Topoisomerase Inhibitors	p. 129
Microtubule Assembly and Disassembly Inhibitors (Mitotic Inhibitors)	p. 129
Hormonal Agents	p. 130
Testosterone- and Estrogen-Lowering Drugs	p. 130
Hormone-Blocking Drugs	p. 131
Testosterone Conversion/Activation Blockers	p. 132
Small-Molecule Targeted Drugs	p. 132
Monoclonal Antibodies	p. 134
Immunotherapy	p. 134
Differentiation Therapy	p. 135
Gene Therapy	p. 136
A Last Word About Drugs	p. 136
The Bottom Line	p. 137
The Future of Cancer Treatment and Clinical Trials: Personalized Medicine	p. 139
Targeted Therapy	p. 139
Personalized Therapy	p. 140
Pharmacogenomics	p. 142
The Bottom Line	p. 142
A Final Word	p. 144
Tell Us What You Think	p. 144
Glossary	p. 145
Resources	p. 155
General Clinical Trials Information	p. 155
Information Specific by Tumor Type	p. 156
Index	p. 157
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

Tom Beer, M.D., is a medical oncologist who leads a research and clinical trial program at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland, Oregon. He has been directly involved in over 100 clinical trials and has treated many hundreds of cancer patients. He has led trials at all phases, including those that use a medication previously only tested in animals for the first time in people, as well as large international trials that compare treatments to each other that, when successful, change the standard of cancer care. It is Tom�s hope is that this book will help readers enter into the often mysterious world of clinical trials armed with information and well prepared to make needed decisions. Larry Axmaker, Ph.D., is a retired psychologist, teacher, and writer who has cancer (prostate) and has participated in several clinical trials. He recently published a book about prostate cancer entitled Real Men Get Prostate Cancer Too that chronicles his sometimes serious, sometimes humorous journey with his cancer.

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