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International Oncology Centre Fortis Hospital,
NoidaInternational Oncology Centre Dr. L H Hiranandani Hospital, Mumbai
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Research

In Cancer research we study the cancer, from its basic biology to the effects of treatment. Our Researchers collect and study the information about cancer and later analyze the information about every aspect of the disease. The study includes:
  • What causes cancer
  • How cancers spread
  • Best treatment modalities
  • Cancer Prevention
The aim of this research is to find the best treatment for many different types of cancers and also prevention as well as early detection. Our oncologists try different combinations and doses of the existing treatment to find out more about the treatment schedule that can work better than the existing schedules. Clinical researchers also use the information collected from across the globe to develop new cancer treatments.

Clinical research that we carry out under the supervision of the oncologists usually involves cancer patients where they take part in what is known as a clinical trial. The clinical trial tests a drug or medical procedure to see if it is a safe and beneficial treatment in one group of people and compares it with standard treatment given to another group of people. Many medicines and drugs work well in laboratory tests. But they must be shown to be safe and effective for people before they can be approved by the regulatory authorities and given out by doctors. There are four phases of the clinical trials.

Phase 1 trials
The aim of a phase 1 trial is to find out if a new drug or treatment is safe in people and also the safe dosage in the patients. It is the first time the treatment is tried out in people only after the efficacy and the safety of the drugs has been established in the laboratory.

Phase 2 clinical trials
Phase 2 trials are carried out to see whether the drug or treatment is effective for treating cancer. Only a treatment that passes phase 1 is tested in a phase 2 trial. Researchers test the new treatment in about 30 to 100 patients. They may all have the same type of cancer, or several different types of cancer. The optimal dose found in the phase 1 study is usually used in these trials.

Phase 3 clinical trials
If the results of phase 2 trials are promising and prove the efficacy of the new treatment modality, the drug then goes on to phase 3 trials. A phase 3 trial makes a comparison of the new treatment with the existing standard treatments to see if the new treatment is better. This treatment is then given to large group of people. It involves thousands of patients in many different hospitals and even different countries. The larger the number of people participating in the trial, the more confident a researcher can be of the results.

Phase 4 clinical trials
Phase 4 trials look at the long-term safety and benefits of a treatment. It continues to study the treatment once it has been approved for use and once doctors are routinely prescribing it to the patients. This phase is useful for gathering information on any side effects that may have been missed in the earlier trials. Normally, a treatment schedule must pass the first three phases before doctors are allowed to give it to patients routinely.

At International Oncology we are currently enrolling patients for the Phase 4 clinical trials along with some of the well known pharmaceutical brands in India. We are also launching our research centre in Jaipur with state of art facilities. This centre will have a global expertise and will work in collaboration with some of the best known cancer centers in the US.