WILKES-BARRE - Geisinger Health System is inviting cancer patients to participate in one of its 128 cancer treatment clinical trials available at its facilities.
Geisinger has 114 open cancer treatment clinical trials for adults and 14 open trials for children. These include, but are not limited to, trials for leukemia, lymphoma, melanoma, sarcoma and breast, bladder, prostate, pancreatic, colon, renal and gynecological cancers. In 2012 alone, 84 patients were enrolled in clinical trials, including nearly 60 at Geisinger Medical Center in Danville, 10 at Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center in Wilkes-Barre, 10 at Geisinger-Scenery Park in State College and five at the Geisinger Medical Center-Hazleton Cancer Center.
"Trials may include an investigation agent in addition to standard therapies already being used. It could also involve already approved therapies that are being tested in a different type of cancer to see if it is as effective or better than the standard therapy," said Heather Albertson, BSN, CCRP, oncology clinical research manager, Geisinger Health System.
"It is important to note that clinical trials are not for everyone, but for those who qualify, cancer clinical trials provide access to cutting edge therapies that may not only help their cancer but lead to new standard treatments in the future," she added.
For more information, go to Geisinger's "Find a study" application online at https://webapps.geisinger.org/findastudy/studies/ct.cfm or call toll free at 1-877-204-6081.
"It is important for people to understand that all standard therapies used today were once clinical trials," Albertson said. "Clinical trials are the key to fighting cancer and finding a cure. Participating in a clinical trial can give you an opportunity to not only possibly improve your own outcome but help substantiate new standard therapies for all future cancer patients."