Current Clinical Trials

Clinical trials are research studies that involve people afflicted with certain diseases and ailments. They are divided into three categories that are helpful to understand if you plan to participate:

• Active Recruiting - these are trials that are actively enrolling participants in the studies.
• Active Not Recruiting - trials that are underway and no longer accepting participants.
• Completed - trials that are considered completed and closed.

Active Recruiting Trials

As of July 2014, there are hundreds of trials that are designed for mesothelioma patients. Here is a sampling from ClinicalTrials.gov, where there are 240 mesothelioma trials listed:

• Wake Forest School of Medicine, North Carolina - The title of this trial is "Do your genes put you at a higher risk of developing mesothelioma." The purpose of this study is to investigate the possibility that a patient’s genetic background puts them at a higher risk of developing mesothelioma.
• Virttu Biologics Limited, Scotland - The title of this clinical trial is Intrapleural Administration of HSV1716 to Treat Patients With Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma. The purpose of this study is to look at the safety and biological effects of single and multiple doses of the HSV1716 virus to treat pleural mesothelioma.
• University Health Network, Toronto - The title of this trial is Pemetrexed (ALIMTA) Plus Cisplatin Followed by Surgery and Radiation Therapy for Mesothelioma. The goal of this study is to determine if Pemetrexed and Cisplatin before surgery and radiation treatment after surgery.

Active Not Recruiting Trials

• Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York - The title of this trial is Psychosocial Needs and Exploration of Online Support for Patients With Mesothelioma. The purpose of this study is aimed at learning how mesothelioma affects patients' emotional and physical well-being.
• M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas - This trial is referred to as Cisplatin, Pemetrexed, and Imatinib Mesylate in Malignant Mesothelioma. This study will determine the maximum dose of the combination of Cisplatin, Imatinib Mesylate, and Pemetrexed for mesothelioma patients.
• National Cancer Institue - The title of this study is SS1(dsFV)PE38 Plus Pemetrexed and Cisplatin to Treat Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma. This study will determine if the combination of SS1(dsFV)PE38, a genetically engineered drug, with Pemetrexed and Cisplatin is safe and tolerable in mesothelioma patients.

Completed Studies and Trials

• Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York - The title of this study is Everolimus (RAD001) for the Treatment of Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma With Merlin/NF2 Loss as a Biomarker to Predict Sensitivity. The goal of this trial was to learn if the drug Everolimus could shrink or slow the growth of mesothelioma.
• Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Mass - this trial was referred to as Bevacizumab (Avastin) and Erlotinib (Tarceva) in Previously Treated Mesothelioma. This study was aimed at determining if the investigational drugs Avastin and Tarceva helped mesothelioma patients who have been previously been treated with chemotherapy.
• National Cancer Institute - The title of this completed trial was SU5416 in Treating Patients With Malignant Mesothelioma. The study looked at the experimental medication SU5416 to determine if it could stop the blood flow to mesothelioma tumors.

Additional Clincial Trial Resources

One of the best ways to find information about clinical trials is to ask your doctor. Physicians are often eager to share information about the trials, especially if they are participating in the study. Disease support groups and organizations are also eager to share information with their members.

In addition, there are several websites that can link patients directly with clinical trials. If you decide to take part in a trial, it is important to discuss the details with your doctor first.

• ClinicalTrials.gov - This website houses thousands of trials located around the country and in more than 100 other countries. Maintained by the National Library of Medicine at the National Institutes of Health, it is considered the premiere trial registry for diseases of all kinds. It allows users to search by disease, location, gender and study type, among other search terms.
• CenterWatch - Created by a Boston-based company, CenterWatch includes trial information from 1,200 companies, including pharmaceutical companies around the world. The site is searchable in a number of ways, including disease type, keyword, type of treatment and geographic region. The site also has a free notification system that e-mails users when a clinical trial is posted that match the user specifications.
• Cancer.gov - Sponsored by the National Cancer Institute, this site allows prospective participants to search for cancer clinical trials in a variety of ways, including location, cancer type and trial phase. It also offers resources for clinical trial newcomers that include learning about clinical trials and finding a cancer treatment trial. The site offers a toll-free phone number (1-800-4-CANCER) and a free live chat for patients who want to learn more.
• CISCPR - The Center for Information and Study of Clinical Research Participation is an independent and non-profit organization that is designed to help patients learn more about clinical trials. The site has an education center to help patients and their families learn more about what it means to be a clinical trial participant. From there, the site offers free trial searches through searchclinicaltrials.org. CISCPR staffers can also help patients who don’t want to muddle through the online listings through its toll-free phone number (1-877-MED HERO). In addition, the group offers free educational pamphlets and brochures.
• EmergingMed - This service connects patients with cancer clinical trials through the patient’s detailed profile. The company charges fees to advocacy groups, medical centers and pharmaceutical companies that use the service. The company is not paid for enrolling patients in trials, and it does not charge patients. The EmergingMed service will also call registered patients when new trial recruitment begins and work to ensure the patient is enrolled.