Improving cancer outcomes through international collaboration in academic cancer treatment trials.
OBJECTIVE
The need for international collaboration in cancer clinical trials has grown stronger as we have made progress both in cancer treatment and screening. We sought to identify those efforts already underway which facilitate such collaboration, as well as barriers to greater collaboration.


METHODS
We reviewed the collective experiences of many cooperative groups, governmental organizations, nongovernmental organizations, and academic investigators in their work to build international collaboration in cancer clinical trials across multiple disease sites.


RESULTS
More than a decade of work has led to effective global harmonization for many of the elements critical to cancer clinical trials. Many barriers remain, but effective international collaboration in academic cancer treatment trials should become the norm, rather than the exception.


CONCLUSIONS
Our ability to strengthen international collaborations will result in maximization of our resources and patients, permitting us to change practice by establishing more effective therapeutic strategies. Regulatory, logistical, and financial hurdles, however, often hamper the conduct of joint trials. We must work together as a global community to overcome these barriers so that we may continue to improve cancer treatment for patients around the world.
Trimble
Edward L
EL
National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD 20892-7436, USA. tt6m@nih.gov
Abrams
Jeffrey S
JS
Meyer
Ralph M
RM
Calvo
Fabien
F
Cazap
Eduardo
E
Deye
James
J
Eisenhauer
Elizabeth
E
Fitzgerald
Thomas J
TJ
Lacombe
Denis
D
Parmar
Max
M
Seibel
Nita
N
Shankar
Lalitha
L
Swart
Ann Marie
AM
Therasse
Patrick
P
Vikram
Bhadrasain
B
von Frenckell
Remy
R
Friedlander
Michael
M
Fujiwara
Keiichi
K
Kaplan
Richard S
RS
Meunier
Francoise
F
D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic / Q000191:economics; D004345:Drug Industry; D006801:Humans; D007391:International Cooperation; D038622:Internationality; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000145:classification / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D013048:Specimen Handling; D016896:Treatment Outcome