About clinical trials

By participating in clinical research, you can help scientists investigate new medications and other strategies to treat and prevent disease. Many effective treatments that are used today, such as antibiotics, antihypertensives, cholesterol-lowering drugs, chemotherapy, vaccines, and cognitive-behavioral therapy, would not exist without research participants.

How do researchers decide which interventions are safe to test in people?

Before a clinical trial is designed and launched, scientists perform laboratory tests and often conduct studies in animals to test a potential intervention’s safety and effectiveness. If these studies show favorable results, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) or respective national competent authorities such as the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices in Germany (BfArM), or the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) need to approve the intervention to be investigated in humans, namely in clinical trials.