Are Asthma Medical Research Studies For You?
Updated April 03, 2015.
Written or reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Board.
Have you ever wondered how patients get to participate in medical research studies for asthma?
Participating in research can be both rewarding and beneficial, but you need to understand a number of things before jumping into a research study.
In an asthma clinical research trial you will regularly see a research physician and the asthma research center staff.
In a clinical trial a huge amount of data is collected ranging from tests you may have already had like laboratory or radiology reports, as well as questionnaires asking you about your quality of life or side effects you have experienced.
Your research doctor could be your regular doctor, but in most cases is not. I preform clinical trials and a few of my patients choose to participate in pharmaceutical research studies, but this is the exception. In clinical trials doctors must follow strict scientific standards. While you are free to get out of a clinical trial at any time and your doctor is free to discontinue your participation if he or she no longer thinks it is in your best interest, doctors often must follow a strict treatment protocol related to your treatment in the medical research study. In clinical practice, your doctor can make judgements based on what he or she thinks is best for you.
When you participate in a study you are watched much more closely than in routine medical practice.
In most asthma studies you will have frequent labs to monitor for side effects as well as spirometry or pulmonary function testing. You may also be asked to check and record your peak flows at home more often and to be religious about the time of day you do this. You might also be asked to log certain things such as symptoms much more frequently than you do currently.
You will also have more access to your research physician and asthma research center staff than you have to your regular doctor. Your research physician’s main job is to make sure that you safely participate and that the strict research protocol is followed as much as possible.
If you experience problems in during the medical research study, your research physician will treat if he or she feels it is related to your participation in the study. If it is an unrelated medical illness, your research physician will ask you to see your regular doctor.
Participating in pharmaceutical research studies you have the possibility of being one of the first patients to receive a new medication for asthma. If the treatment turns out to be effective, you will be one of the first people to benefit.
Healthcare can be very expensive, nearly all testing done in the study that is part of the research is done at no cost to you. For example, if your study includes challenge testing, pulmonary function testing, or a chest x-ray, you can bring those results to your regular doctor so that you do not have to repeat or pay the costs!
Even if you do not receive a direct benefit from participating in medical research studies for asthma, you have contributed to scientific knowledge and the greater good of society. With out medical research volunteers, we cannot move asthma research forward.
If you decide to participate in pharmaceutical research studies you need to understand the other side as well. Consider the following risks before agreeing to participate:
There are many benefits to you and society associated with participating in asthma medical research studies. If you think this sounds like something you might be interested in, talk with your doctor about how you might find clinical studies in your community.
Source
Written or reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Board.
Have you ever wondered how patients get to participate in medical research studies for asthma?
Participating in research can be both rewarding and beneficial, but you need to understand a number of things before jumping into a research study.
How are Pharmaceutical Research Studies Different From My Regular Care
In an asthma clinical research trial you will regularly see a research physician and the asthma research center staff.
In a clinical trial a huge amount of data is collected ranging from tests you may have already had like laboratory or radiology reports, as well as questionnaires asking you about your quality of life or side effects you have experienced.
Your research doctor could be your regular doctor, but in most cases is not. I preform clinical trials and a few of my patients choose to participate in pharmaceutical research studies, but this is the exception. In clinical trials doctors must follow strict scientific standards. While you are free to get out of a clinical trial at any time and your doctor is free to discontinue your participation if he or she no longer thinks it is in your best interest, doctors often must follow a strict treatment protocol related to your treatment in the medical research study. In clinical practice, your doctor can make judgements based on what he or she thinks is best for you.
When you participate in a study you are watched much more closely than in routine medical practice.
In most asthma studies you will have frequent labs to monitor for side effects as well as spirometry or pulmonary function testing. You may also be asked to check and record your peak flows at home more often and to be religious about the time of day you do this. You might also be asked to log certain things such as symptoms much more frequently than you do currently.
You will also have more access to your research physician and asthma research center staff than you have to your regular doctor. Your research physician’s main job is to make sure that you safely participate and that the strict research protocol is followed as much as possible.
If you experience problems in during the medical research study, your research physician will treat if he or she feels it is related to your participation in the study. If it is an unrelated medical illness, your research physician will ask you to see your regular doctor.
Benefits Of Medical Research Studies
Participating in pharmaceutical research studies you have the possibility of being one of the first patients to receive a new medication for asthma. If the treatment turns out to be effective, you will be one of the first people to benefit.
Healthcare can be very expensive, nearly all testing done in the study that is part of the research is done at no cost to you. For example, if your study includes challenge testing, pulmonary function testing, or a chest x-ray, you can bring those results to your regular doctor so that you do not have to repeat or pay the costs!
Even if you do not receive a direct benefit from participating in medical research studies for asthma, you have contributed to scientific knowledge and the greater good of society. With out medical research volunteers, we cannot move asthma research forward.
Risks Of Medical Research Studies
If you decide to participate in pharmaceutical research studies you need to understand the other side as well. Consider the following risks before agreeing to participate:
- In many cases the drugs are new, so your doctor does not yet know if you will benefit. In some studies the new treatments do not show benefit and in others the patients occasionally do worse.
- Some patients may benefit, but you may not.
- While your doctor will explain side effects to you, there is always the chance in a medical research study that not all the potential side effects have been discovered yet.
- Insurance companies will not cover the cost of care received in research. Make sure you talk with the research physician about what is and is not covered.
Conclusions
There are many benefits to you and society associated with participating in asthma medical research studies. If you think this sounds like something you might be interested in, talk with your doctor about how you might find clinical studies in your community.
Source
- National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Explore Clinical Trials. Accessed February 15, 2014.
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