Nationally Recognized
Pacific Retina is nationally recognized and active in clinical trials for the past fifteen years. Pacific Retina’s doctors have a long history of participating in clinical trials for ground-breaking new retinal treatments. Our physicians not only participate in the nation’s largest multi-center clinical trials; our physicians have helped design new studies and innovative therapies. Ask your Pacific Retina doctor about clinical trials that are currently enrolling for conditions such as wet age-related macular degeneration, dry (atrophic) age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and more. We are proud to have been involved in the landmark studies that brought vision saving treatments including Lucentis (ranibizumab, Genentech), Eylea (aflibercept, Regeneron), Ozurdex (dexamethasone implant, Allergan), and photodynamic therapy (visudyne, Novartis) for retinal diseases involving age related macular degeneration (wet AMD), retinal vein occlusions, and diabetic macular edema.
The physicians at Pacific Retina are dedicated to bring you the most advanced surgical and medical care available. Our research team is committed to carefully selecting well-designed, safe clinical studies that offer promising and exciting new treatments for our patients. Our clinical trials are a valuable opportunity for patients to access novel treatments for retinal diseases.
Clinical Trials
FAQs
WHAT ARE CLINICAL TRIALS?
Clinical trials are voluntary research studies of human beings that are designed to answer specific health questions and necessary for the approval of new treatments.
Individuals volunteer to participate in clinical trials for a variety of reasons. Participation allows access to new treatments that are not available to the general public. Clinical trials are monitored very carefully, with additional testing with no additional cost. Finally, some volunteers take pleasure in helping others by contributing to medical research and potentially benefiting many patients with similar conditions in the future.
WHAT IS A RESEARCH COORDINATOR?
NCRVA Research Clinical Coordinators have extensive experience in coordinating clinical studies and would be the patient’s point of contact once your physician has established you as a potential subject. They help answer questions regarding the logistics of the study and coordinate your care. They are well versed with each study protocol to advocate for the safety and well-being of each participant.
WHAT ARE THE PHASES IN A CLINICAL TRIAL?
Phase 1 Trials: A small number of participants are used to test an investigational drug or treatment. The main focus is to determine the safety of the drug in humans. They evaluate the safe dose range and identify possible side effects from the drug/treatment.
Phase 2 Trials: After completing the Phase I trials, the information is used to treat a slightly larger limited number of participants. Phase II uses the information gathered from Phase I to further evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the drug/treatment.
Phase 3 Trials: The experimental treatment is given to a large group of participants in a variety of clinical settings to evaluate its safety, effectiveness and to monitor the side effects.
Phase 4 Trials: Once the drug has been approved by the FDA, this is when post marketing studies are conducted to continue to gain more information about the benefits and safety of the drug.