What You Need to Know about Endometrial Cancer

Treatment Studies

Doctors conduct treatment studies to learn about the effectiveness and side effects of new treatments. In some studies, all patients receive the new treatment. In other studies, doctors compare different therapies by giving the new treatment to one group of patients and the standard therapy to another group. Treatment studies are also designed to compare one standard treatment with another.

Women who take part in these studies have the first chance to benefit from treatments that have shown promise in earlier research. They also make an important contribution to medical science.

Doctors are studying new ways of giving radiation therapy and chemotherapy, new drugs and drug combinations, biological therapies, and new ways of combining various types of treatment. Some studies are designed to find ways to reduce the side effects of treatment and to improve the quality of women's lives.

Women who are interested in taking part in a study should talk with their doctor. They may want to read the National Cancer Institute booklet Taking Part in Clinical Trials: What Cancer Patients Need To Know, which explains the possible benefits and risks of treatment studies.

Another way to learn about treatment studies is through PDQ, a cancer information database developed by the National Cancer Institute. PDQ contains information about cancer treatment and about treatment studies in progress throughout the country. The Cancer Information Service can provide PDQ information to patients and the public.

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