Clinical trials are the engine of progress in the development of new drugs and
devices for the detection, monitoring, prevention and treatment of cancer. A
well conceived, carefully designed and efficiently conducted clinical trial can
produce results that change clinical practice overnight, deliver new oncology
drugs and diagnostics to the marketplace, and expand the horizon of contemporary
thinking about cancer biology. A poorly done trial does little to advance the
field or guide clinical practice, consumes precious clinical and financial
resources and challenges the validity of the ethical contract between
investigators and the volunteers who willingly give their time and effort to
benefit future patients. With chapters written