April 8, 2008

are drug trials being stopped too early?

Speakers:
Dr Giovanni Apolone, author on the research paper, Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research
Prof David Kerr, Editor-in-Chief Annals of Oncology, University of Oxford
Prof Stuart Pocock, Director, Clinical Trials Research Group

Anticancer drug trials can be stopped early if short-term results are good, but a dramatic rise in early closure of studies could prevent proper evaluation of the long-term risks and benefits of the treatments. New research to be published in the journal Annals of Oncology has assessed all trials published in the past 11 years that were stopped early because they showed benefit to patients. Scientists involved with the research came to the Science Media Centre to discuss their findings and the wider implications.