Clinical Trials | Health Services (2024)

Featured clinical trials

Major depressive disorder

Learn more about a clinical study for adults diagnosed with depression.

Learn more

Lung cancer screening

Help develop a test that detects lung cancer early, when more treatment options are available.

Learn more

HIV prevention

Study to improve HIV prevention for Black women.

Learn more

All clinical trials

Filter by:

Now recruiting

Study to evaluate the effects of an investigational drug on cardiovascular risk in people who were recently hospitalized for a heart attack

Conditions

Heart disease

Gender

All genders

Age

45+

Locations

Multiple locations

Now recruiting

Study to improve HIV prevention for black women

Conditions

HIV prevention

Gender

Cisgender and transgender women

Age

18+

Locations

Multiple locations

Now recruiting

Study to help develop a blood test to detect colorectal cancer

Conditions

Colorectal cancer screening

Gender

All genders

Medical breakthroughs wouldn’t be possible without clinical trials.

By including people of various communities, ages, races, genders and ethnicities, researchers can better understand how people respond to treatments. This helps to ensure that medical advancements are safe, effective, and accessible, ultimately leading to more equitable healthcare for all.

Joining a clinical trial doesn’t mean you’ll be a guinea pig or receive low-quality care.

Patient care and safety is prioritized above all else. You’re able to stop participation at any time, and you’ll never be treated as a lab rat or guinea pig.

Here are just a few of the additional benefits research participants experience by joining clinical trials:

Better understand your health & condition

Access to the latest treatments & technology

Condition-specific care from trusted sources

Directly contribute to medical breakthroughs

Do you have questions about clinical trials or want to share your participant story?

We want to hear from you! Email us at ClinicalTrials@Walgreens.com or connect with us on any of the social channels below.

Note: This contact form is for general inquiries only. Do not use the form to share medical information or communicate about specific ongoing studies. Contact the research team directly if you have questions about a specific study.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Clinical trials are research studies that look at new ways to prevent, detect or treat diseases. They rely on human volunteers, known as participants, and aim to find out if a new medical approach is safe and effective.

Clinical trials often test new drugs or new combinations of drugs, new surgical procedures or devices, or different ways to use existing treatments. Clinical trials can also test other aspects of care, such as ways to improve the quality of life for people with chronic conditions.

People of all ages, genders, races and ethnic groups can volunteer to participate, and all participants must qualify for a study before joining a clinical trial. Each clinical trial has specific eligibility criteria, which help identify appropriate participants and ensure their safety. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (required for participation) and exclusion criteria (which prevent participation). These criteria are based on factors such as age, gender, disease type and stage, treatment history and other medical conditions.

Some studies look for patient volunteers who have a known health condition and can help improve understanding, diagnosis or treatment, while others need healthy volunteers who don’t have significant health problems and may be needed to help test new treatments.

Each clinical trial has a unique set of requirements and screening process. Before joining a trial, you’ll receive an informed consent form detailing the study’s purpose, duration, compensation, contact information, and required tests or procedures. The form also explains the study’s known benefits and risks and can help participants make an informed decision about whether to join a study.

Study participation is a personal decision. The research team will be prepared to answer questions to help you fully understand what to expect before, during and after the study

Many clinical trials for new drugs or medical devices are conducted in a series of steps called phases. Each phase has a different purpose and helps researchers answer different questions.

Phase 1 – Testing begins with a small group of people (typically 20–80) to help evaluate safety and identify side effects.
Phase 2 – More people are included (typically 100–300) to determine effectiveness and continue evaluating safety.
Phase 3 – The new drug or treatment is given to a larger group of people (typically 1,000–3,000) to help confirm effectiveness, monitor side effects and compare it with current treatments.
Phase 4 – After a drug or device is approved by the FDA and made available to the public, researchers continue monitoring its safety and effectiveness in the general population.

A clinical trial sponsor is the person, institution, company or organization responsible for initiating, managing or financing the clinical trial. A study’s principal investigator (PI), often a medical doctor, works closely with the clinical research coordinator (CRC) to lead the trial and help ensure compliance and safety. The PI and CRC typically work for the sponsor and leads a team of research staff that could include doctors, nurses, technicians and other healthcare professionals. Members of the research team regularly monitor participants’ health to determine the study’s safety and effectiveness.

Walgreens has partnered with trial sponsors and researchers to help make clinical trials more accessible. Browse our active clinical trials and select “Learn more” to see how you can get involved.

Insurance is generally not required to participate in a clinical trial.

Participants may be paid, but the amount varies based on the study. Some clinical trials will provide compensation for the time and effort involved with participation, and reimbursem*nt for costs associated with research-related travel, such as parking fees or meals.

Yes. You can decide to end your participation and withdraw at any time. Just tell the study researcher if you wish to stop being in the study. You don’t need to give a reason why you want to stop participating.

Clinical trials involve some level of risk to participants, but there are numerous safeguards and regulations in place to ensure studies are as safe as possible.

Before joining a trial, you’ll receive information about potential risks and benefits, which can help you make an informed decision about whether to participate.

Each trial follows a strict study plan called a protocol, which describes how the research will be performed. Researchers also use a group of experts, known as an Institutional Review Board (IRB), in most clinical trials to make sure participant risk is acceptable and as low as possible. Some studies that take place in the United States or are government-funded must follow rules set by other U.S. agencies to help manage risk and protect research participants. These agencies include the Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals may monitor your health during the trial. They will carefully document any side effects and closely monitor for adverse events, which are unfavorable changes in health. All outcomes are investigated to determine if they’re related to the trial or treatment.

There are different types of clinical trials; they don’t always test medicine or include a placebo, which is a pill or substance that has no therapeutic effect.

Placebos aren’t used in research if an effective treatment is already available or if the lack of effective therapy would put a person at risk. Participants will always be notified if a trial uses a placebo during the informed consent process.

Clinical trial participant privacy and confidentiality are protected by law. For example, trials that use or disclose a participant’s protected health information (PHI) for research purposes must be conducted in accordance with the Privacy Rule of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

During the informed consent process, participants will receive information on personal information collected during the trial, how it will be used, who will have access to the information, and rights regarding personal information.

Factors like age, race and gender influence the risk and likelihood of developing a disease and responses to treatment. By including more diverse groups of people in clinical trials, we can better understand the therapy effectiveness and safety for the broader population.

Clinical trials resources

Better understand how you can engage with clinical trials, no matter where you are in their health journey, from trusted sources.

National Institutes of Health: Clinical Research Trials and You
FDA: Clinical Trial Diversity
Patient Advocate Foundation: Education Resource Library
FDA: "Medical Device Clinical Trials" (video)

The Center for Information and Study on Clinical Research Participation: Education Center
NoiseFilter: "Clinical Trials: The Heart and Soul of Science" (video)
NoiseFilter: "Clinical Trials: Lights, Camera, Take Action!" (video)
University at Buffalo Clinical and Translational Science Institute: "Sofia Learns About Research" (children's activity book)
Walgreens Clinical Trials for sponsors: Clinical Trials for Healthcare Companies

References

https://www.nih.gov/health-information/nih-clinical-research-trials-you/basics
https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/clinical-trials-and-studies/what-are-clinical-trials-and-studies
https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/research/clinical-trials/participating
https://www.nih.gov/health-information/nih-clinical-research-trials-you/glossary-common-terms
https://clinicaltrials.gov/study-basics/learn-about-studies
https://clinicaltrials.gov/study-basics/glossary
https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/for-professionals/special-topics/research/index.html
https://www.nimhd.nih.gov/resources/understanding-health-disparities/diversity-and-inclusion-in-clinical-trials.html

April 22, 2024

New Insights on How Walgreens Clinical Trials Operate

In a conversation with Ramita Tandon, Walgreens’ Chief Clinical Trials Officer, we explore the company’s cutting-edge strategies to maximize its expansive pharmacy network for clinical trials conducted at retail pharmacies. This interview illuminates the ways in which Walgreens integrates technological advancements and engagement tactics to revolutionize the process of enrolling participants and decentralizing clinical trials.

April 15, 2024

Making Clinical Trials More Accessible for Black Americans, Digitally

Collaborating with community partners, we design and build outreach and engagement activations to break down barriers e.g. the lack of awareness about trials, mistrust of research, and logistical obstacles that prevent equitable access across sub-groups.

March 18, 2024

Walgreens New Dencentralized Clinical Trials Model in Action

The 2024 SCOPE Summit, a pivotal event in clinical trials, showcased innovative strategies to transform patient recruitment and trial conduct. At the forefront of these discussions wasJohn Campbell, Head of Decentralized Trials for Walgreens,who shared profound insights

March 1, 2024

How Walgreens’s clinical trials business is performing as its two-year anniversary nears

Less than two years afterenteringthe clinical trials business, Walgreens has made strides in increasing diverse representation in pharmaceutical trials, according to Ramita Tandon, the company’s chief clinical trials officer. The retail pharmacy giant opened a clinical trials arm in June 2022 with the goal of diversifying trial participants, which havehistoricallybeen overwhelmingly white and male.

November 27, 2023

Walgreens Highlights the Need for Clinical Trial Recruitment in Rural Communities

Clinical trial recruitment has historically been centered in larger urban areas near established medical institutions, leaving out the nearly 61 million Americans that live in rural locations where healthcare access is limited. Walgreens is proud to be an industry leader in increasing access to clinical research across the country, and is committed to reaching vulnerable and marginalized populations that are often excluded from

August 18, 2023

Bridging the Knowledge Gap About Diversity in Clinical Trials

Diverse participation in clinical trials is critically low. At this year’s Black Women’s Expo, Walgreens sponsorship centered on educating the community and sparking change for better health outcomes.

August 04, 2023

Chicago Tonight: Black Voices is a local public television program presented by WTTW

There are several reasons for a lack of diversity among trial participants. It can have life-and-death consequences for people of color.

June 27, 2023

DIA 2023: Innovating Patient Recruitment Through Pharmacy Channels

In this session at DIA, John Campbell, head of decentralized trials, Walgreens began with emphasizing that much of industry does not yet understand the role of pharmacy in clinical trials.

June 15, 2023

Walgreens taps Freenome as latest clinical trials partner

Retail pharmacy giant Walgreens inked another partnership to recruit participants for research as it continues to build out its clinical trials business. The company signed a deal with biotech startup Freenome to advance clinical trials of its blood-based tests for the early detection of cancer.

May 23, 2023

Walgreens and the Commitment to Trials

The commitment of pharmacy to address clinical trials has been a recurring topic this week. Craig Lipset was joined by Kendal K. Whitlock, MPH, Head of Digital Optimization, RWE Clinical Trials from Walgreens to discuss the state of the industry, commitment to the field, and progress to-date.

January 25, 2023

Clinical Trials & Black Folks

In the digital age, technology has become an important tool to improve involvement in clinical trials. Watch this discussion with Kendal Whitlock, Head of Digital Operations at Walgreens Boot Alliance

Clinical Trials | Health Services (2024)

Featured clinical trials

Major depressive disorder

Lung cancer screening

HIV prevention

All clinical trials

Medical breakthroughs wouldn’t be possible without clinical trials.

Joining a clinical trial doesn’t mean you’ll be a guinea pig or receive low-quality care.

Do you have questions about clinical trials or want to share your participant story?

Walgreens Clinical Trials Events

References