Clinical research

Break in cancer treatment cuts side effects and does not affect life expectancy, study finds

A trial has shown that breaks from first-line treatments for patients with metastatic and/or locally advanced kidney cancer did not cause meaningful detriment to their life expectancy or quality of life.…

NHS DigiTrials: how the search for COVID-19 treatments is revolutionising clinical trials

The UK health service’s data-led approach to trials has helped to save millions of lives from COVID-19 worldwide — here’s how the NHS is setting an exciting new blueprint for all clinical trials.…

Gout drug could cut length of hospitalisation in patients with moderate to severe COVID-19

Using the gout drug colchicine as a treatment for COVID-19 could reduce the length of both supplemental oxygen therapy and hospitalisation in patients, a small trial finds.…

Government to fund COVID-19 clinical trial using different vaccines for first and second doses

The COVID-19 Heterologous Prime Boost study will seek to establish the effects of using different vaccines for the first and second dose.…

Taking the P: why the founder of P-values would be turning in his grave

How P-values are used today has gradually morphed further and further from their intended use and scientists are now questioning the prominence they are given when interpreting clinical trial data.…

Azithromycin has no benefit for patients with severe COVID-19, RECOVERY trial data suggest

The antibiotic azithromycin has no meaningful clinical benefit for patients who are hospitalised with severe COVID-19, a preliminary analysis of data from the Randomised Evaluation of COVID-19 Therapy trial has found.…

Inhaled corticosteroid added to COVID-19 PRINCIPLE trial

Budesonide, an inhaled corticosteroid, is the latest drug to be investigated as a treatment for COVID-19 patients who are not in hospital.…

Pharmacies must be at the forefront of the COVID-19 vaccination campaign

It will not be easy to deliver the huge COVID-19 vaccination programme, but there is no doubt that the profession can step up to the challenge, with community pharmacy playing a vital role.…

Cefiderocol effective for carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative infections

The clinical and microbiological outcomes of cefiderocol, a new antibiotic, were similar to the best available therapy for patients with life-threatening carbapenem-resistant infections, a phase III study has suggested.…