Clinical Trials

The injectable drug Repatha can lower cholesterol to unheard-of levels. The next question is whether the disease-prevention benefit it worth its high price.

Pricey New Cholesterol Drug's Effect On Heart Disease Is More Modest Than Hoped

9:36am March 17, 2017

by Harlan Krumholz

The injectible drug Repatha is spectacularly good at lowering cholesterol. But the first big clinical trial of its ability to prevent heart attack and stroke finds smaller benefits.

Nancy Roach at a conference in 2016. She's long worked as a patient's advocate and recently teamed up with scientists to help improve the design of studies, as well as to improve clinical care.

Advice From Patients On A Study's Design Makes For Better Science

3:18pm February 24, 2017

by Richard Harris

Increasingly, advocates for patients are in the room when big medical studies are designed. They demand answers to big questions: "Will the results of this study actually help anybody?"

Several new studies show mixed results for men taking testosterone supplements.

Health & Safety

Does Testosterone Improve Older Men's Health? It Depends

4:52pm February 21, 2017

by Patti Neighmond

Several studies out this week show mixed results for testosterone replacement. It appears to protect bone density and strength and prevent anemia, but there is no effect on memory and cognition.

Anemic patients did not know about their condition during a testosterone trial.

Researchers Failed To Tell Testosterone Trial Patients They Were Anemic

4:22pm February 21, 2017

by Richard Harris

Low levels of iron in the blood may indicate a serious but treatable medical condition if caught early, but patients in a testosterone trial were not informed, a bioethicist finds.

Research with living systems is never simple, scientists say, so there are many possible sources of variation in any experiment, ranging from the animals and cells to the details of lab technique.

What Does It Mean When Cancer Findings Can't Be Reproduced?

4:54pm January 18, 2017

by Richard Harris

Results from some key cancer studies were different when the experiments were redone in different labs. Scientists don't yet know why but say the answer could have health implications for patients.

Karen Lorne, diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease in July, volunteers weekly with her certified therapy dog, Bailey, at the Ronald McDonald House in Chapel Hill, N.C.

Simplified Study Aims To Quickly Test A Long-Shot ALS Treatment

5:03pm October 25, 2016

by Richard Harris

Fifty patients with Lou Gehrig's disease have volunteered for a study of a dietary supplement as an experimental treatment. Even a failure could help by eliminating a dead end from consideration.

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Since a single scientific study rarely provides a definitive answer, researchers combine the results of several studies to reach clearer conclusions.

Reviews Of Medical Studies May Be Tainted By Funders' Influence

4:33pm October 12, 2016

by Richard Harris

Researchers often combine the results of many medical studies to evaluate treatments. But when the combiners have a financial interest, the results might be inaccurate, a scientist says.

Biotrial, a French company that runs clinical studies, has opened a facility in Newark, N.J.

Company That Ran Fateful Drug Trial In France Opens Test Facility In U.S.

11:09am October 05, 2016

by Rae Ellen Bichell

Months after a man died in a botched clinical trial in France, the company that ran it has opened a big research facility in New Jersey, where as many as 50 clinical trials could be done each year.

The aim is to make clinical trial data available to volunteers and scientists, even if a drug or therapy being tested turns out to be a failure. That could help identify serious side effects.

HHS Issues New Rules To Open Up Data From Clinical Trials

6:41pm September 16, 2016

by Richard Harris

The aim is to make clinical trial data available to volunteers and scientists, even if a drug or therapy being tested turns out to be a failure. That could help identify serious side effects.

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When Pregnant Women Need Medicine, They Encounter A Void

11:12am August 08, 2016

by Rae Ellen Bichell

Women encounter a dilemma when they get pregnant: Should they continue taking medications that keep them healthy? That question can be scary, because drugs are rarely tested for safety in pregnancy.

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