Clinical Research

Clinical research trials are studies involving human subjects. Before a drug or treatment protocol is tested widely, it goes through years of testing in cells, tissue culture and pre-clinical animal models. The process is closely regulated by the government and monitored by UC's Institutional Review Board.

The UC cancer clinical trials office manages oncology trials for all of the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine's cancer-related clinical departments. The office is organized by disease-specific areas, such as brain tumor, breast cancer, gastrointestinal cancers, genitourinary cancers, gynecological cancers, head and neck cancers, leukemia, lung cancer, lymphoma, melanoma, multiple myeloma and others.

About Clinical Trials

There are numerous types of clinical trials, each with a different purpose: prevention, screening, diagnostic and treatment.

Patients who participate in clinical trials are followed for an extended period of time (or life) after the trial is closed. The cancer clinical trials office manages nearly 200 trials that are open to enrollment or in active follow-up. This does not include pediatric clinical trials, which are managed by Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.

Information For Clinician-Researchers

All cancer-related clinical research studies at the UC Cancer Center are required to be reviewed and monitored by the Protocol Review and Monitoring Committee (PRMC) prior to submission to the Institutional Review Board of the University of Cincinnati. The PRMC provides a peer review mechanism and strives to ensure that the clinical research at the UC Cancer Center meets the highest standards of scientific merit, including appropriate study design, statistical methods and feasibility of completion.

In addition, the UC Cancer Center Data Safety and Monitoring Board (DSMB) provides expert medical, scientific and statistical oversight for the conduct of cancer-related therapeutic clinical trials that require a data safety monitoring board as part of their data safety monitoring plan. PRMC Guidelines and DSMB Charter are provided below.

• Investigator Initiated Trials Committee (IITC) Charter (PDF)
• Protocol Template (DOCX)
• Protocol Review and Monitoring Committee (PRMC) Charter (PDF)
• UCCC PRMC New Study Routing (PDF)
• PRMC Major Amendment Request (PDF)
• PRMC Accrual Review Sheet (PDF)
• DSMB Charter (Coming Soon)

For questions about access to open clinical trials or protocols, call the clinical trials office at 513-584-7698.

Phase 1/Experimental Therapeutics Program

The UC College of Medicine is the only center within 100 miles of Cincinnati to offer an early stage drug trial program. This program focuses on phase-1 "first-in-human" clinical trials, offering the most up-to-date care concepts to patients who do not respond to standard treatments. For information about phase 1 clinical trials, call 513-584-7698 or toll free at 866-724-CURE. View a list of current trials and eligibility information