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Open Access 01-08-2017 | Topic Review

Ethical considerations of neuro-oncology trial design in the era of precision medicine

Authors: Saksham Gupta, Timothy R. Smith, Marike L. Broekman

Published in: Journal of Neuro-Oncology | Issue 1/2017

Abstract

The field of oncology is currently undergoing a paradigm shift. Advances in the understanding of tumor biology and in tumor sequencing technology have contributed to the shift towards precision medicine, the therapeutic framework of targeting the individual oncogenic changes each tumor harbors. The success of precision medicine therapies, such as targeted kinase inhibitors and immunotherapies, in other cancers have motivated studies in brain cancers. The high specificity and cost of these therapies also encourage a shift in clinical trial design away from randomized control trials towards smaller, more exclusive early phase clinical trials. While these new trials advance the clinical application of increasingly precise and individualized therapies, their design brings ethical challenges . We review the pertinent ethical considerations for clinical trials of precision medicine in neuro-oncology and discuss methods to protect patients in this new era of trial design.

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Title: Ethical considerations of neuro-oncology trial design in the era of precision medicine
Authors: Saksham Gupta
Timothy R. Smith
Marike L. Broekman
Publication date: 01-08-2017
Publisher: Springer US
Published in: Journal of Neuro-Oncology / Issue 1/2017
Print ISSN: 0167-594X
Electronic ISSN: 1573-7373
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11060-017-2502-0

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