About Clinical Trials
Clinical trials test the safety and effectiveness of a therapy or drug. After drugs or procedures are tested in the lab and in animals, the most promising treatments are moved into clinical trials to find out how well they work in humans.
The development, research and testing of a drug or treatment can take many years before getting to the clinical trial stage.
There are three phases of clinical trials. If these phases are completed and the safety and effectiveness of a drug or treatment is proven, the drug or treatment can be available to the public.