Our esteemed chairperson, Proffessor David Cameron, comments on the project:
VIEW the CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRY
In 2021 Make 2nds Count conducted a large research study (the MSBC survey) of 768 patients living with secondary breast cancer to investigate whether patients had been offered clinical trial opportunities. The findings of this study showed that patients had limited opportunities to discuss clinical trials with medical staff and in response to this Make 2nds Count founded the Patient Trials Advocate (PTA) service.
The PTA service is ran by research nurses and funded by Make 2nds Count. The service can help secondary breast cancer patients find a potential clinical trial and support them through the initial clinical trial process.
87% of secondary breast cancer patients in the MSBC survey said they would likely use a patient friendly clinical trial registry specific to secondary breast cancer. Based on this feedback Make 2nds Count has created the UK Clinical Trial Registry (CTR), which is listed at the bottom of this page.
The aim of the registry is to provide secondary breast cancer patients with a single list of actively recruiting trials, alongside their locations. Currently, patients have to search many different databases, such as ClinicalTrials.gov or the NIHR's Be Part of Research, to see what trials might be available to them. These databases use different search algorithms and the outcome of searches can be different and very time-consuming. We hope that the CTR will make this search much easier by providing an up-to-date single list of UK trials.
VIEW the CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRY
We have not changed the medical language that is used to describe each trial, and are aware that navigating the terminology of clinical trials and secondary breast cancer classifications can be difficult. A glossary of key terms is available here, and the PTA service is also available to further discuss and explain clinical trials and study criteria to patients. Once you have booked an appointment and spoken to one of our nurses, they will conduct a personalised search to see what is available and navigate the medical terminology landscape with you. We invite you to use the PTA service alongside your own searches of the CTR.