How do I find clinical trials I actually qualify for?
The short answer
There are thousands of open cancer trials, so the hard part is not whether trials exist. It is matching your specific cancer type, stage, biomarkers, prior treatments, and location to the ones you are eligible for, and that matching is where good options get missed.
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Who this applies to
Anyone considering a clinical trial, often patients with advanced disease, a rare cancer, or cancer that has progressed on standard treatment. Trials exist at every stage, including newly diagnosed.
Why matching is the hard part
Eligibility for a trial is defined by detailed criteria: your exact cancer type and subtype, stage, specific biomarkers and mutations, what treatments you have already had, and your overall health and organ function, plus location and logistics. A trial can be perfect on paper and rule you out on a single criterion. This is why "are there trials for my cancer?" is the wrong question, and "which trials match my case?" is the right one.
What you need in hand
To match trials well you need your diagnosis and stage, your full biomarker and genomic testing results, a record of prior treatments and how you responded, and recent labs. Incomplete biomarker testing is the most common reason a patient misses a targeted trial, so confirming that testing is complete is often the first step.
Where trials live
The main registries are ClinicalTrials.gov and the NCI clinical trials search, which list open studies with their eligibility criteria. Your oncologist can also refer you to trials at their institution or a nearby academic center. The registries are comprehensive but not personalized. The work is filtering thousands of listings down to the handful you actually fit.
Questions to ask your oncologist
- Based on my biomarkers and prior treatment, are there specific trials I might qualify for?
- Would you refer me to a trial here or at a nearby academic center?
- Is my biomarker testing complete enough to match me to targeted-therapy trials?
- If I found a trial, would you help review whether I am eligible?
Check this against your case
Upload your records and OpenCancer matches open trials to your actual diagnosis, biomarkers, and prior treatments, turning thousands of listings into the ones you may genuinely qualify for.
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Written by OpenCancer’s science team and grounded in NCCN and NCI guidance. Independent medical review by our clinical team is in progress.
For informational purposes only. This page is grounded in published guidelines and is not medical advice. Always consult your oncologist or care team before making treatment decisions.