Participate in a Study

Liver cancer is often hard to control with current treatments; therefore, doctors recommend patients with liver cancer consider taking part in a clinical trial.

Patients who participate in clinical trials have the first chance to benefit from treatments that have shown promise in earlier research. They also make an important contribution to medical science by helping doctors learn more about the disease.

Clinical trials come in four phases.

• In Phase I trials, researchers try to determine safe dose levels
• In Phase II trials, which involve a larger group of patients, researchers hope to build on what they learned in the first phase by trying to establish whether cancers will respond to the safe dose levels and to determine what side effects will occur.
• In Phase III trials, researchers compare the experimental treatment with the standard treatment or a placebo to prove whether the new treatment is truly effective.
• In Phase IV trials, researchers monitor the effects of long-term usage.

For more information about clinical studies, see our Patient Guide to Clinical Studies.

View a list of clinical trials for liver cancer patients offered by Seattle Cancer Care Alliance.