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Clinical Trials for Conception

What You Need to Know Before You Sign Up

By Kelly Burgess

"Sometimes patients are a little put off because they have to go to one specific place to have blood drawn, or they don't like having to take something at a specific time or in a specific way," Dr. Uhler says. "But to bring a better product to market, you need to be willing to do what the trial sets out to do."

Dr. Uhler notes that no one should go into a clinical trial with unrealistic expectations. The purpose is research. There also are no guarantees of cures or even that you, the participant, won't be in the control or placebo group.

ClinicalTrials.gov has a search engine to look for clinical trials by keyword and by area. Keyword searches can also be done in any commonly used search engine. Resolve: The National Infertility Association has a wealth of information, including a search function, on clinical trials related specifically to infertility.

In general, fertility clinics do not conduct clinical trials; FCI is the exception. Dr. Uhler explains that they were approached by drug companies to participate because they have an unusually large patient base. The physicians were open to the idea because they are interested in research that improves outcomes for their patients. For example, FCI conducted one trial a year or so ago, testing a once-weekly injection of a medication for ovarian stimulation that typically requires daily injections.

"That's such a big improvement in care right there," Dr. Uhler says. "If we can give a patient one injection instead of seven, that's a huge step forward in patient care and comfort. It's what it's all about."