Clinical Trials

In a typical year, more than 2,800 new cancer patients receive care at Norris Cotton Cancer Center at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center. More than half the people we see are patients with breast, skin, lung and prostate cancers. We also care for patients at regional cancer centers in Manchester, New Hampshire, and in St. Johnsbury, Vermont, as well as at regional institutions affiliated with the Cancer Center. (Patients at these regional locations are eligible for enrollment into selected clincial trials).

Clinical trials link basic research with clinical care, and lead to improved therapies. A clinical trial may test the application of innovative technology, discover new and better techniques or combinations in cancer treatment, or identify preferred methods of preventing, detecting, diagnosing, or controlling cancer.

Our clinical research interests span a broad range of topics, including immunotherapy, drug resistance, drug mechanisms, drug metabolism, drug combinations and scheduling, regional therapy, multi-modality therapy, psychological intervention, new imaging approaches, gene expression, and palliative care. Norris Cotton Cancer Center researchers collaborate across disciplines in order to apply scientific findings to improve cancer therapy and ultimately enhance the care of our patients and of cancer patients worldwide.

Approximately 150 studies are currently available at Norris Cotton Cancer Center. These include research protocols developed by Cancer Center investigators through Dartmouth Medical School as well as trials funded by national cooperative groups and high-quality industry-sponsored trials. A large proportion of Norris Cotton Cancer Center-initiated treatment studies are peer-reviewed and funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Defense; most others are sponsored by the pharmaceutical industry.