Question: I am interested in learning more about clinical trials as a treatment option for my lung cancer. How do I know if I am eligible? How can I find a clinical trial that is a good fit for me?

(Answered by Dr. Jorge Nieva from the University of Southern California during his appearance at the May 2024 Lung Cancer Living Room. It has been edited for this use.)

Answer: 

A clinical trial is a rigorous and systematic way to find out if a new treatment is good. It’s a way of testing out a new treatment, making a comparison of 2 old treatments, or maybe testing an old treatment plus a new treatment to find out the best outcomes. Clinical trials are scientific investigations designed to find out if we should change the way we do things normally.

Running clinical trials is the only way that the next generation of cancer patients can get better care than the prior generation. When you consider all the advances made in lung cancer over the last 10 years, there are about 400,000 people alive today who are with us only because our treatments got better. And the only reason those treatments got better is because other lung cancer patients said, “I’m going to participate in a clinical trial to find out if the new is better than the old.” Every advance that we’ve made has happened because patients decided, “I want to try and help in this endeavor. I want to try and move things forward.”

Not everyone is eligible for a clinical trial for a variety of reasons, including:

  • Overall health
    You have to be somewhat healthy to participate. Most clinical trials won’t let you join if you’re sick and frail or have a weak heart or kidneys, etc.
  • Tumor size and location
    Often, the tumor has to be visible and measurable, which isn’t always the case with lung cancer.
  • Timing and other treatments
    Most of the time, clinical trials only want you at the moment you’re changing therapies. You typically can’t be on a treatment and doing fine and then say, “I want to try a new clinical trial drug; I hear it’s very exciting.” Most clinical trials require that your current treatment not be working or that it be your first treatment. This means that the window of opportunity to participate in a clinical trial can be kind of narrow.

If you are interested in participating in a clinical trial as part of your treatment for lung cancer, a good place to start is with your healthcare team. They may know about local clinical trials that you are eligible for. If your physician doesn’t have one to offer you, you can also ask your local university hospital if they have any clinical trials for you and get a second opinion there.

Clinicaltrials.gov has a lot of information, but you need some expertise to understand it. For help navigating that site and all clinical trial options, call GO2 for Lung Cancer for free, one-on-one guidance. GO2 has a program called LungMATCH which is staffed by people with advanced degrees who are skilled at communicating in a clear and easy-to-understand way. They provide support and education and help people sort through clinical trial options.

To connect with GO2’s LungMATCH team, call our HelpLine at 1-800-298-2436 or email support@go2.org. We are here to help.

Please note that the information included in any published answer is for educational pursuit only and is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. The reader should always consult their healthcare provider to determine the appropriateness of the information for their own situation. Nothing from GO2 for Lung Cancer should be construed as an attempt to offer or render a medical opinion.