INTERNATIONAL CLINICAL TRIALS DAY

May 20 is International Clinical Trials Day, which highlights the importance of clinical trials research and commemorates the day Scottish physician James Lind began his study to find a treatment for scurvy in 1747.

By dividing 12 sailors into separate groups and testing the effect of providing different treatments to each group, Lind was able to provide evidence of the link between citrus fruit and preventing scurvy. This is the first recorded controlled clinical trial and changed modern medicine.

From The James Lind Library:

Without stating what method of allocation he used, Lind allocated two men to each of six different daily treatments for a period of fourteen days. The six treatments were: 1.1 litres of cider; twenty-five millilitres of elixir vitriol (dilute sulphuric acid); 18 millilitres of vinegar three times throughout the day before meals; half a pint of sea water; two oranges and one lemon continued for six days only (when the supply was exhausted); and a medicinal paste made up of garlic, mustard seed, dried radish root and gum myrrh.

James Lind only had enough oranges and lemons to conduct this trial for one week, but by the end of that week those on citrus fruits were well enough to nurse the others (but sadly the British Admiralty didn’t issue an order for the distribution of lemon juice to sailors for another 42 years).

Today, International Clinical Trials Day is also a reminder of the importance of clinical trials research in improving the lives of people affected by breast cancer.

1 in 8 Australian women will be diagnosed with breast cancer by the age of 85 and breast cancer remains the leading cause of cancer death in women aged 25 – 49. This year, it’s estimated that 18,087 women and 148 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer in Australia.

“In our 40th year, Breast Cancer Trials recognises that clinical trials research has contributed to every major milestone in the prevention and treatment of breast cancer and a significant fall in breast cancer mortality rates,” said Soozy Smith PhD, CEO of Breast Cancer Trials.

“The IBIS-I clinical trial, for example, proved that tamoxifen reduces breast cancer rates for women with a high risk of developing the disease and that the benefit of the drug continues several years after treatment has stopped. Likewise, the HERA breast cancer clinical trial showed that the drug trastuzumab (Herceptin) can significantly reduce the risk of breast cancer returning.”

“Our mission is to improve the quality of life for breast cancer patients through the conduct of clinical trials research. We now know that breast cancer is not just one disease, but many, and we’re increasingly able to target treatments and therapies to suit the individual circumstances of the patient.”

More recent areas of breast cancer clinical trials research include immunotherapies and safe de-escalation of treatments.

“International Clinical Trials Day is a great way for us to talk about the critical role that clinical trials play in ensuring that we continue to work toward real outcomes for people with breast cancer – to live longer, to live better, and to never die of breast cancer.”

For media enquiries contact: Anna Fitzgerald, Communications Manager 0400 304 224 or anna.fitzgerald@bctrials.org.au

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