CAREGIVING + CLINICAL TRIALS

Your loved one is considering a clinical trial.
You have questions too.

Clinical trials can bring new possibilities, but they can also mean more appointments, decisions, logistics, and uncertainty. Learn what to expect, what questions to ask, and how you can support your loved one throughout the process.

Understand Clinical Trials
Find a Clinical Trial

Caregiver Story

Hear what it was like supporting a loved one through a clinical trial.

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EXPLORE YOUR OPTIONS

Find a Clinical Trial

Every diagnosis is different, and so is every treatment journey.

Thousands of clinical trials are actively enrolling patients across the country. Search by condition and location to discover options your loved one may not have considered yet, including trials for advanced, rare, or hard-to-treat conditions.

Knowing what kind of study you’re considering can help you weigh what participation might involve for you and your loved one.

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Interventional Trials

Test investigational drugs, devices, or procedures.

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Observational Studies

Track health outcomes without introducing a new treatment.

Ready to search?

Visit ClinicalTrials.gov, the federal registry of clinical research. Enter your loved one’s exact diagnosis and ZIP code to see trials they may qualify for today.

Search ClinicalTrials.gov

FEATURED CLINICAL TRIAL

Alzheimer’s Disease Trials

Bristol Myers Squibb is actively enrolling clinical trials across the U.S. to study mood and behavior changes in Alzheimer’s Disease. Use the clinical trial finder to see whether there may be a study location near your loved one.

Explore Alzheimer’s Disease Clinical Trials

The Alzheimer’s Disease trial finder tool is provided by Bristol Myers Squibb and opens an external website. There is no obligation and no cost to participate. You won’t be asked to share your name or contact information to use the screening tool or ZIP code finder.

Looking for another condition? Explore ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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Supporting a Loved One in a Clinical Trial

If your loved one is considering a clinical trial, you may be helping weigh options, manage appointments, track changes, and communicate with the research team. This guide can help you understand the process and prepare for the caregiver role.

Understanding Clinical Trials

Learn the basics, how clinical trials work, and what the different phases are designed to answer.

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Why Families Consider Clinical Trials

Explore possible benefits, important considerations, and why different families choose to participate.

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Questions to Ask Before Joining

Get organized with key questions to bring to the research team so you can make an informed decision together.

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Understanding What a Clinical Trial Is

A clinical trial is a research study that helps doctors learn whether a new approach — such as a medication, medical device, prevention strategy, or behavior change — is safe and effective. Some trials test investigational treatments. Others focus on early detection, prevention, or improving quality of life.

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), clinical trials are designed to answer questions like:

  • Does this treatment work better than the current standard of care?
  • Does it have fewer or different side effects?
  • Can it help people live better with a chronic or serious condition?

Before the FDA approves a clinical trial to begin, laboratory testing must demonstrate a potential therapy’s safety and early effectiveness. Once approved, trials move through four phases, each designed to answer different questions about dosage, safety, and real-world effectiveness.

Clinical Trial Phases

20–100 participants; focuses on safety and proper dosage. Lasts several months. About 70% of drugs advance past this phase.

Up to several hundred participants; studies short-term safety and effectiveness, with a small placebo group for comparison. Lasts several months to 2 years. About 33% of drugs advance.

300–3,000 participants; compares the new treatment against existing options or a placebo over 1–4 years. Because this phase is larger and longer, rarer or delayed side effects are more likely to be identified. Only 25–30% of drugs advance.

Several thousand participants; continues to study long-term safety and effectiveness after FDA approval.

Exploring an Alzheimer’s Disease clinical trial? Bristol Myers Squibb is currently enrolling studies at locations across the U.S.

Explore Alzheimer’s Disease Trials

Why Families Consider Clinical Trials

Families choose clinical trials for many different reasons. Some are looking for access to treatments not yet available to the public. Others want to help advance research that could help future patients — including others with the same diagnosis. And some are simply trying to explore investigational treatment options when standard treatments haven’t been enough.

Whatever your reason for exploring this, it’s worth understanding both what trials offer and what they ask of you. Your “right” reason is the one that fits your loved one’s goals, values, and current health situation.

Weighing the Benefits and Challenges

Every clinical trial comes with tradeoffs. A clear look at both benefits and challenges can help your family make a decision you can live with.

Potential Benefits

  • Access to investigational treatments before they’re publicly available
  • More frequent medical monitoring and detailed health assessments than standard care typically provides
  • Access to specialists in your loved one’s specific condition
  • Increased understanding of your loved one’s disease or condition
  • Contributing to research that may help others in the future

Things to Consider

  • The treatment may not work, or your loved one may experience side effects
  • Depending on the trial phase, your loved one could be assigned to a placebo group rather than the active treatment
  • Some trials involve frequent visits, additional lab work, or overnight stays — which adds real time and logistical demands on caregivers
  • You may not benefit from the investigational treatment

These considerations are not reasons to rule out a trial — they’re things to discuss honestly with your loved one’s care team so you can make a fully informed decision. Remember: A clinical trial is a medical decision.

Exploring an Alzheimer’s Disease clinical trial? Bristol Myers Squibb is currently enrolling studies at locations across the U.S.

Explore Alzheimer’s Disease Trials

What to Expect in the Clinical Trial Process

While every study is different, most clinical trials follow a similar path.

  • Identify possible trials — Start with your loved one’s diagnosis, stage, and current treatment plan.
  • Talk with your loved one’s doctor — Ask whether a trial makes sense now and what risks to consider.
  • Check eligibility — Trials have specific inclusion and exclusion criteria.
  • Review the study plan — Learn what will be required: visits, tests, medications, and reporting.
  • Informed consent and paperwork — Review details about risks, benefits, alternatives, and privacy.
  • Plan logistics — Including transportation, time off work, caregiving coverage, and communication with the care team.
  • Participate and track — Follow the schedule, administer medications if needed, monitor changes, and report side effects.
  • Coordinate ongoing communication — Keep all providers aligned, especially if your loved one has multiple specialists.

Your Role as a Caregiver

In many trials, caregivers are part of what makes participation possible. You are not “just” providing rides or reminders — you are often the primary observer of day-to-day changes.

Here’s what that typically looks like in practice:

  • Finding and comparing potential trials
  • Tracking symptoms, side effects, mood, sleep, and cognition
  • Supporting medication schedules and study requirements
  • Coordinating transportation and logistics
  • Communicating questions and concerns to the research team
  • Keeping the rest of the care team informed

In a clinical trial, you may interact with the research staff regularly. Your observations can help the team understand how a treatment affects real life, not just lab results.

Exploring an Alzheimer’s Disease clinical trial? Bristol Myers Squibb is currently enrolling studies at locations across the U.S.

Explore Alzheimer’s Disease Trials

Questions to Ask Before You Enroll

A clinical trial can come with new options and new uncertainties. These questions can help you and your loved one understand what participation will really look like — and whether it fits your goals, health needs, and day-to-day life.

Download the checklist and bring it to your next appointment or trial screening call. It is okay to ask for plain-language answers.

Download Questions Checklist

Questions Caregivers Often Ask About Clinical Trials

Before a drug or treatment can be approved for use, it undergoes rigorous screening and preclinical testing to measure safety and efficacy. Before a clinical trial can begin, researchers typically conduct years of testing. Every clinical trial includes a detailed informed consent process to make sure you and your loved one understand what participation involves and whether any side effects have been experienced by previous participants.

Placebos aren’t used in every trial. Some studies compare an investigational treatment against the existing standard of care rather than an inactive substance. When placebos are used, it’s governed by strict ethical standards — for serious or life-threatening conditions, participants are not denied effective treatment simply to create a control group. The research team will explain upfront whether a placebo is part of the trial design.

The safety of the patients is a top priority for everyone involved in the trial. Before a clinical trial can even begin, it’s reviewed by an institutional review board (IRB), a committee of doctors, scientists, and community members responsible for protecting clinical trial participants. This review ensures that, both before and during the trial, steps are taken to protect the rights and safety of the trial participants. During the clinical trial, participants’ safety is closely monitored.

It varies widely. Some trials require only a few visits every couple of months; others involve weekly check-ins or occasional overnight stays. Before enrolling, the full schedule will be laid out and you’ll have the opportunity to ask questions. Going in with a realistic picture of the time commitment — and thinking through transportation and scheduling in advance — will help you plan accordingly.

Research costs are typically covered by the trial sponsor. Patient care costs not covered by the sponsor are often picked up by the participant’s health insurance. Before enrolling, ask the research team specifically which costs your loved one might be responsible for, then confirm coverage with your insurance carrier.

No. Regional hospitals and smaller research facilities run clinical trials too. For rarer conditions, some trials offer compensation for travel to help remove that barrier.

Not at all. Clinical trials exist for patients at every stage of a diagnosis — including newly diagnosed patients and those managing specific symptoms. Your loved one’s doctor can help you understand which trials your loved one might be eligible for right now.

NATIONAL CAREGIVER HELP DESK

You don’t have to figure this out alone.

Talk with a caregiving expert for personalized support, guidance, and help finding resources. Experts are available Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m. ET.

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