Pancreatic cancer clinical trials are research studies by specialists in the field of oncology to experiment with a new treatment on human subjects. Oncology is the study of cancer, in the five major areas of biology, etiology, diagnosis, prevention and treatment. Oncology has led to most important developments in the understanding not only of cancer and its treatments but also of natural biology. Oncologists are physicians who dedicate themselves to the treatment of cancer and further expertise as surgical, medical or radiation therapy oncologists.
Cancer is the uncontrollable growth and dividing up of cells. Cells become cancerous when the controls that manage cell growth malfunction. The cells keep growing out of control and in due course form a pancreatic mass or malignant tumor.
Medical trials have shown that a Pancreatic polypeptide is frequently secreted by pancreatic endocrine tumors and this is thought to be a sign for such tumors. Not all problems with the pancreas indicate pancreatic cancer. Pancreatitis, an inflammation of the pancreas, is an example. There are two forms of this, acute pancreatitis and chronic pancreatitis.
The pancreas is covered with pancreatic islet cells. Clinical studies have experimented and developed a process called islet transplantation. Pancreatic islet cells are removed from the pancreas of a recently departed organ donor. The pancreatic islet cells are decontaminated, processed, and put into another person. When these are implanted into the person awaiting the transplant, the beta cells in these islets start to make insulin. It is expected that pancreatic islet cell transplantation will assist people with type1 diabetes and enable them to live without needing to inject insulin.
Pancreatic cancer clinical trials are an option for those in need of pancreatic cancer treatments. New pancreatic clinical studies and drug trials continue to provide hope for improved pancreatic cancer survival rates. Pancreatic cancer therapy and treatments at these trials can involve chemotherapy, behavioral therapies, and methods of administering radiation treatments, medical devices, immunologic agents and nutritional therapies.
Therapeutic pancreatic cancer clinical trials can be divided into phases 1, 11, 111 and 1V, although usually only concerned with 1 – 111. Taking part in oncology clinical trials is not being a “guinea pig.” These clinical studies are reviewed at the hospital where the individual’s physician is based and must be monitored and approved by an institutional review board.
All pancreatic cancer clinical trials have precise eligibility standards describing exactly who can be treated in the clinic. Every one enrolling in one of these oncology clinical trials is given a consent form relating the purpose of the study, treatment they will receive, risks and benefits, possible side effects and financial costs of treatment. This consent form has to be signed to indicate that the individual understands all aspects of the pancreatic cancer therapy that they will receive in this clinical trial and all the associated risks.
