Who Can Participate in Clinical Trials?
All clinical trial protocols include inclusion/exclusion criteria: strict rules about who can and can't participate. The criteria are usually based on age, gender, the stage of your disease, previous treatment history, and other medical conditions, and you must fit the inclusion criteria to qualify for the study.
Essential
If you are considering participating in a clinical study, you and your family have a right to be thoroughly informed about the nature of the study and any potential risks. You have a right to clear, detailed answers to your questions — and to expect that study staff will repeat and explain information so you understand it.
Inclusion and exclusion criteria are not used to accept or reject you personally, but to ensure that researchers can answer the questions the trial is designed to study. Some seek participants with illnesses or conditions to be studied in the clinical trial, while others need healthy participants. Some want women; others need men. One trial might test AD treatments in people with a family history of the disease.
