My doctor recommended a clinical trial for melanoma – now what?
Clinical trials are one way to find possible treatments for melanoma
That’s why the number of people who die each year from melanoma has gone down – in other words, more people survive melanoma
Clinical trials have led to FDA approval of many new options to treat melanoma
Expected deaths from melanoma per year
Before the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves a new potential drug, it must be tested in phases of carefully planned clinical trials to learn about its safety and how well it works (e ectiveness)
10,130
FDA
2021 7,180
2016
Source: www.cancer.net/cancer-types/melanoma/statistics
There are hundreds of clinical trials that patients with melanoma can join
• You may be able to join a clinical trial before or a er you’ve tried other FDA-approved treatments – it is not a last resort • If you join a clinical trial, you will get standard of care, which is the usual FDA-approved treatment for your type of melanoma • You may also get the investigational drug that is being tested. An investigational drug is not yet FDA-approved to treat a certain type of melanoma.
Stages 2-4
There are clinical trials for every step of your cancer journey and all stages of melanoma
A er trying FDA-approved treatments
Stage 1
Before trying FDA-approved treatments
If you join a clinical trial, a team of cancer doctors and research staff will give you the best possible care
Some clinical trials are for specific types of melanoma Ask your doctor if your melanoma has been tested for biomarkers , which are unique features of your cancer. Biomarkers give doctors more information about your melanoma.
There are many checks to ensure participant safety is the top priority. Many clinical trials pay for the investigational drug being tested and any tests or doctor visits required by the study. Your insurance company may cover other routine costs of care, such as other drugs, imaging scans, and blood tests. Ask the research sta about costs before you decide to join. Some clinical trials reimburse (pay back) travel costs to the clinical trial center. If not, non-profit organizations may have programs to help you pay.
Safety
Cost
Before joining a clinical trial, ask your doctor and the research sta your questions.
Travel
Find a list of questions to ask at: www.cancer.net/research-and-advocacy/ clinical-trials/questions-ask-about-clinical-trials
To learn more about melanoma clinical trials, visit: www.melanoma.org/clinical-trials www.bmsstudyconnect.com/melanomastudies
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