UF Health marks International Clinical Trials Day with cancer research education event

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (WCJB) -UF Health hosted an event for International Clinical Trials Day to educate the community about the role research plays in developing new cancer treatments.

Doctors, researchers and students came together to learn about clinical trials. Officials say there are about 500 clinical trials underway at UF Health, including 175 related to cancer.

Researchers say many people misunderstand what clinical trials really are. They say trials are not just for last-resort cases but can help patients at different stages of their cancer journey.

“Another thing that’s important to understand is that a lot of people believe that clinical trials are a last resort when there’s not any other options available. I think that’s a misconception,” said Erin Monari, administrative director for the clinical research office and the cancer institute at UF Health. “We actually have a very careful and broad diverse portfolio of trials available from first diagnosis through survivorship.”

Researchers say every treatment available today once started as a clinical trial, and new breakthroughs are continuing to happen every day, especially in areas like immunotherapy.

“Every treatment that we have available right now started as a clinical trial sometime in the past and so we’re finding new treatments every day that are going to be the standard treatments in the future,” Monari said.

Officials emphasized participation is voluntary and patient safety remains a top priority throughout the entire process.

“There are a lot of mechanisms in place to make sure participants in clinical trials have their privacy and their agency respected,” said Dr. Duane Mitchell.

UF Health officials say participation in a clinical trial is completely voluntary, and patients can leave a study at any time while still receiving standard medical care.

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