HOW IS PATIENTS PARTICIPATION IN THE STUDY AFFECTED IF THEY DECIDE NOT TO PARTICIPATE IN THE SPECIMEN BANKING PORTION OF THE STUDY?
Deciding whether to take part in the specimen banking portion of the clinical trial is the patient’s choice. If patients decide not to participate, it will not affect the medical care they receive. They may participate in the treatment part of most RTOG studies without agreeing to let the RTOG Biospecimen Resource store their specimen indefinitely. However, there are clinical trials that require specimen submission for testing and/or banking of the specimen – clinical studies in which submission of specimen is very important to the scientific research being done. In these cases, required specimen submission is clearly stated in the protocol and in consent forms. A patient would not be able to participate in the study unless the patient consented to have specimen submitted for the purposes described in the study.
Related Questions
- For patients who have consented to participate in the parallel Biological Study, when should blood samples be collected, how should the samples be stored and when will they be collected?
- Can I compensate VA or VMRF employees who refer or enroll as patients to participate in my study?
- Does participation in the study affect patients legal rights?
