You can also find drugs approved for specific diagnoses at the National Cancer Institute\u2019s website<\/a>, or explore details on dosing, side effects, and precautions of thousands of drugs on Medline Plus Drug Information<\/a>.<\/p>\n If you\u2019ve found a drug you\u2019re interested in, you should ask your doctor if the drug is a good fit for you and whether they would recommend the treatment. Possible questions to ask your doctor include:<\/p>\n Has the drug been approved for my cancer or tumor type?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n How effective is the drug?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n What are the drug\u2019s side effects?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Are you aware of whether insurance will cover this drug?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Are there other treatment options I should consider?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n Before treatment, check with your health insurer to see if the drug is covered by your insurance plan. You can do this by checking your insurer\u2019s website and reading your specific plan\u2019s Summary of Benefits<\/a>. You can also call the insurer directly to ask about coverage. If it\u2019s not covered, you can pursue your insurer\u2019s \u201cdrug exception\u201d process, which can help you get access to the drug. Your doctor might need to contact the insurer directly to describe how the drug is the best treatment option for your cancer. Finally, you should always consider the out-of-pocket costs of any new drugs or treatment regimens. Even if the drug is covered, there may be a regular co-pay for it or other related costs.<\/p>\n If the drug is not approved by the FDA for your type of cancer, there may still be options. Ask your doctor whether they would prescribe the drug outside of its approved indication based on medical evidence that supports its use in a case like yours. This is called off-label use<\/a>. Your doctor may need to read research studies and other clinical guidelines first to see if scientific evidence supports its use for your type of cancer.<\/p>\n Off-label use happens with all kinds of drugs but getting health insurance to cover off-label use of medications can be tricky. Check to see if your plan covers a drug\u2019s off-label use by calling your health insurance company directly. You can also submit a claim to your insurer requesting that it reimburse you for the medication cost. If there isn\u2019t a lot of research about the drug\u2019s off-label use, your insurance may or may not cover the cost. Research whether drug makers or other programs for financial assistance<\/a> can help cover the drug cost.<\/p>\n Investigational drugs\u2014also called experimental drugs\u2014are medications that are still being tested by the drug maker and have not yet received FDA approval to be marketed, sold, or prescribed. They are most commonly available to people taking part in clinical trials to demonstrate the drug\u2019s safety and efficacy. If you are interested in joining a clinical trial<\/a>, a good first step is to let your oncologist know.<\/p>\n Your oncologist can guide your search for a clinical trial. If you\u2019d like to search online, the National Cancer Institute has a searchable database of its clinical trials. The U.S. National Library of Medicine also keeps an online database called ClinicalTrials.gov, which you can search by drug name, your type of cancer, and other parameters. Some patient advocacy groups maintain disease-specific clinical trial databases. These and other cancer clinical trial databases can be found here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Once you\u2019ve found a potential clinical trial, check if you\u2019re eligible to participate. Your eligibility may depend on your age, sex, the type of cancer you have, how long you\u2019ve had cancer, other treatments you\u2019re receiving, and other medical conditions you may have. If you find that you\u2019re eligible, the next step is to ask whether the clinical trial is still accepting new participants. Your doctor can help you navigate the eligibility criteria and availability of clinical trials.<\/p>\n All clinical trials have specific goals, so try to determine whether those goals are in line with your goals for treatment. The location of the facility offering the clinical trial is another thing to think about, as that will affect your time and travel expenses. Find out how often you would need to travel to the study site\u2019s location if you participate. If necessary, evaluate the cost of taking off work or arranging for childcare. You should also consider whether your insurance will cover your routine care costs while you\u2019re on the trial. For help covering the costs, inquire about any financial assistance the sponsor of the clinical trial may offe<\/p>\n If you have any questions about the clinical trial process, ask your doctor to contact the team running the clinical trial. You can also contact the team directly<\/a>.<\/p>\n If you can\u2019t participate in a clinical trial for a specific drug you are interested in, then you have 2 options for drug access: \u201cExpanded Access Programs\u201d or \u201cRight to Try.\u201d<\/p>\n Expanded Access Programs,<\/a> which are also called compassionate use programs, help patients with serious illnesses get access to investigational drugs. Your doctor applies to the drug manufacturer for access. If approved by the manufacturer, your doctor must submit an application to the FDA seeking permission to treat you with the drug. FDA typically approves about 99 percent of the applications it receives for expanded access. Then, your doctor will oversee your treatment with the investigational drug.<\/p>\n Recently, the FDA announced a new pilot program called Project Facilitate<\/a> to help patients and health care providers find access to investigational cancer drugs through Expanded Access.<\/p>\n\n
2. Does your doctor recommend using the drug \u201coff-label?\u201d<\/h3>\n
3. Is the drug investigational?<\/h3>\n
![\"Image](\"https:\/\/www.cancer.net\/sites\/cancer.net\/files\/final_fdainfographic.png\")
Download full-size PDF<\/a><\/p>\n4. How do I find a clinical trial to take part in?<\/h3>\n
5. What else should I consider in joining a clinical trial?<\/h3>\n
6. If I\u2019m not eligible or the clinical trial is closed, what are my options?<\/h3>\n