The third installment of our series explores clinical trials from the perspective of a cancer patient.

Over the course of the first two installments of Let’s Talk About Clinical Trials, we’ve taken a closer look at why clinical trials are important, and how the safety of trial participants is protected.

For our third installment, we turn our focus to the people who make cancer clinical trials possible: the patients who participate in trials.

Martina Wood has a unique lens on clinical trials, drawing from her experience as a breast cancer survivor, the wife of a cancer patient, and a longtime patient representative for the Canadian Cancer Trials Group.

How were you first introduced to clinical trials?

My husband was diagnosed with cancer back in 2011. At the time, we didn’t really understand the breadth and scope of trials, and it seemed like something only for ‘lost cause’ patients. Ultimately, we decided not to participate. Two years later, I was also diagnosed with cancer. I was offered a clinical trial but felt it wasn’t right for me.

Are there misconceptions about clinical trials you’d like to clear up?

I think a lot of people shared my incorrect assumption that clinical trials are only a last resort. If a friend or relative tells you they’re in a clinical trial, you might think they’re on their last legs.

But from my own cancer experience and my time as a patient partner in research, I’ve learned that clinical trials are offered for all stages of cancer. They study all sorts of different things, including how to save or prolong a patient’s life, as well as how to make their quality of life the best it can be.

Why should cancer patients ask their doctors about clinical trials?

They should ask about clinical trials because trials may offer new meds or treatments that have the potential to cure patients or, for patients with advanced cancer, give a new lease on life. People can and do live longer thanks to being part of a trial. For stage 4 patients who have exhausted standard treatments, a clinical trial may help them stay alive for just long enough that a new potentially life-saving trial could extend their life yet again.

What else would you like people to know about clinical trials?

The research done through clinical trials in recent decades has helped make huge advancements in treatments that have prolonged the lives and improved the quality of life of so many people in our society.

But sadly research is often delayed because clinical trials can take a long time to get enough patients as participants, which translates to longer time to get results, and this delays getting potential advancements to patients. So I believe that patients should stand up and be counted. Consider joining a clinical trial if you have the opportunity, both to further scientific knowledge and potentially to help your own outcomes.

Cancer patients and their families can find more information about clinical trials from the Canadian Cancer Clinical Trials Network (3CTN) at https://3ctn.ca/for-patients/