Anyone participated in clinical trials?

skiddy2k

Zaarin wrote:

Personally, I would advise anyone never to take part in clinical trials that involve testing new drugs. For example, someone I know was involved in one for a new chemotherapy drug, and was left with serious intermittent problems with depression (which the senior consultant involved admits was due to the drug); she has never been in any way compensated and it has ruined perhaps 1/3 to 1/4 of her life for the last 6 years. She once came very close to suicide. Think twice.

Thanks for advice... occupational hazzard i suppose... part of the risk of the job.

DrFluffy

Martine1081 wrote:

I am doing a first year module and 1 semester of it is pharmacology, for some work we have to chose a receptor antagonist drug to write about "this may be one you are taking or interested in". . I'm asthmatic so thought I'd go through my medication.
All the ones I have picked so far have turned out to be agonist drugs! :rotfl:

I have recently started work as a Cardiographer ( I do ECGS all day long!) so I'd now like to do one related to either cardiovascular system/arrthymias/heart attacks. We have to write various things - side effects/physiological responses/role of the receptor and I'm worried I am going to choose a drug that doesn't have much scope

ACE inhibitors seem to crop up alot, so i might go down that pathway


I have a copy of BNF52 at my disposal and various other books, its choosing the drug I'm having difficulty with!!!

ACEI's are an interesting one, as they doesn't just antagnoise the angiotensin II receptor - they also act to increase bradykinin levels (hense the cough you often get), which is something not seen with ARBs...

Impet_Limpet

DrFluffy wrote:

ACEI's are an interesting one, as they doesn't just antagnoise the angiotensin II receptor - they also act to increase bradykinin levels (hense the cough you often get), which is something not seen with ARBs...

I finally settled on Metoprolol Tartrate (trade name betaloc (R) and lopressor (R)):cool: it looks quite interesting in the way it is in a group that have less effect on the Beta 2 receptors.

its only due in on 24th April, but I like to complete it early. Its quite a straightforward assignment

1. Name of the drug
2. What type of receptors it works at
3. Name other drugs that are also agonists for this type f receptor
4. The physiological role of the receptor at the site where the antagonism occurs
5. Consequence of the antagonist at this site - give details of how the response at the tissue may change
6. Draw a lovely log concentration effect curve (I love these!) to illustrate the effect
7. Are there other sites where the receptors exist that are not associated with the action you are interested in, what is the consequence of the drug at this iste.

I reckon 2 evenings will see that finished and printed (I Hope anyway!)

Thank you

DrFluffy

Cool! Good luck with it

louloubelle79

Anyone know of anywhere in essex where i could consider doing this?

skiddy2k

MalcolmWas wrote:

Things like coupon sites are safer.

:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

irishwench69

MalcolmWas wrote:

Yes. I made a lot of money but it wasn't steady cash. I could only do a trial a month because they are so infrequent. I stopped after I read a newspaper account of someone that died due to a trial procedure that went wrong.

Things like coupon sites are safer.

People like you disgust me. You shouldn't see these trials as a quick buck - they are a highly specialised method of developing new drugs for diseases - something most people would see as a good thing.

I put up the links for people interested in the research side, maybe those who had an illness (sometimes they look for certain conditions, such as asthma - it is extremely rare for conditions such as cancer or infections like HIV to have just healthy volunteer studies - the Phase I studies for these types of drugs are often also done in people with the disease)

It's people like you who spoil it for everyone else - guess what, you're not supposed to do endless trials - "only" one a month - you were lucky you got away with that to be honest.

Oh, and believe everything you read in the papers do you? No doubt you were thinking about the Northwick Park incident - well guess what, no one died..... http://www.nwlh.nhs.uk/news/item.cfm?id=97

It is a tiny number of people that have died or had serious injuries from clinical trials for a while now - it's a shame people forget all the good work that's being done :mad:

People want lots of money with no strings attached, for no risk........guess what, this is a serious industry, and most people don't see it as some money making scheme :mad: :mad:

As for your coupons comment........well where do I start :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

Sorry, I know you're new and this might not be the most welcoming of messages, but I just don't understand how you can write off an entire sector like that.........

Martine1081, glad you got your article sorted

IW x

Impet_Limpet

My friend has impaired metabolism and recently took part in a couple of trials. He sees it as a chance to help develop drugs because he said he would never know if he would need those exact same drugs when hes older. The quantity of money may be considered high but that is because there are risks attached.


Clinical trials will always be contraversial (sp?) people take part but most never expect any serious effects to happen to them and then when anything serious happens the media jump in with the headlines.

DrFluffy

irishwench69 wrote:

Oh, and believe everything you read in the papers do you? No doubt you were thinking about the Northwick Park incident - well guess what, no one died.....

~Yet... what about the guy with proven early stage lymphoma, you know, the one who lost all his fingers and toes...

melancholly

irishwench69 wrote:

People like you disgust me.

bit harsh?

some people are scared of doing trials.... it's understandable really! they are highly regulated and about as safe as they can be, but nothing is certain - recent cases have highlighted this. i personally don't think that 'acceptable risk' includes losing fingers and toes - and that's my call to make about my body.

if they weren't a way of making money then they wouldn't pay so highly - that's how the research gets done (not just purely medical either) - you always have a self-selection bias...... i think it's valuable work and that the research is important, but i'm not going to verbally attack someone for deciding that there are other ways that they are more comfortable making a bit of money.