Seminal data from decades ago already demonstrated a marked underrepresentation of older patients in clinical trials: now an analysis of more than 300 randomised clinical trials (RCTs) shows not only that the disparity persists but the gap between trial and population median ages is widening. [more]
No more colorectal or lung cancer in phase 1 trials. Stretching the point, this could be the scenario in the near future following the trends described in an abstract presented at the International Congress on [more]
The Cancer World team hopes that all our readers have had a good start to 2018. We look forward to bringing you critical, independent and rounded coverage of the big stories affecting quality cancer care [more]
A chance to work at the heart of the trailblazing MINDACT trial gave Ivana Božović-Spasojević a memorable lesson in the value of international academic trials, and the logistics of how to run them. She spoke [more]
Anna Wagstaff looks at changes in the business, regulatory and science arenas that could open the way to delivering better cancer treatments, faster and cheaper. Of 91 new therapies approved for solid tumours between 2002 [more]
Evidence-based medicine is the cornerstone of medical practice, and yet clinicians are rarely offered training in the tricky business of finding, evaluating and making sense of the evidence they need. Anna Rouillard reports on an [more]
Not so long ago, research protocols excluded older cancer patients based on chronologic age. Now they exclude patients with comorbidities, and as most older patients suffer additional ailments, they do not fit the protocols. But [more]
Starting next year, trial sponsors can negotiate ethical approval in a member state of their choice, and have the same terms applied across all EU countries. Daniela Ovadia looks at the implications of the new regulation [more]
Patients who have run out of options don’t have time to wait for lengthy trials. But they also need treatments that offer proven benefit, and not just hope. Peter McIntyre asks whether we can speed [more]
Almost four in ten serious adverse drug reactions now listed in the labels of 12 targeted cancer therapies were not mentioned in the studies that led to their approval. Half the serious reactions that were [more]
For many patients seeking access to treatments unavailable in their home country, the Cross-border Healthcare Directive turned out to be a bit of a disappointment. But a closer look shows it may help raise standards [more]
Little by little, patient advocates are winning their battle to be involved in decisions that affect them. They are now focusing on how to use their new-found voice to deliver real change for the people [more]
Over the past three decades, the interpretation of clinical trial outcomes in studies of advanced-stage non-small-cell lung cancer has changed. The robustness of findings from these trials has been called into question. We believe this [more]