All new drugs must complete a series of tests before they can be prescribed by doctors or sold in pharmacies. The work carried out by Charles River is part of the testing process. We conduct clinical trials, testing the effects of investigational drugs on volunteers. To see a list of currently enrolling studies, click here.

For your safety, before any clinical trial can take place, the investigational drug undergoes extensive laboratory tests. A clinical trial will not be started unless experts believe that it is safe to move on to clinical trials. We need people to participate in this process to advance investigational medications.

Charles River Clinical Services Northwest conducts mostly Phase I studies. Phase l studies are primarily concerned with assessing safety and are usually conducted in a small number of healthy volunteers. In the majority of Phase I studies, volunteers are given a previously untested or unproven medicine. The purpose of this is to:

1. See how long it takes for your body to absorb, distribute, metabolize (how the body breaks down) and excrete (how the body gets rid of) the study drug.
   

2. See how the medicine reacts either when a volunteer is fasted or given food, or also to see how other medication affects the drug.
   

3. Determine the optimum dose level.

As part of the study procedures, you will be monitored on a regular basis. This will be done by taking blood and urine samples and by blood pressure, temperature and ECG (electrical heart tracing) measurements. The studies are supervised at all times by fully trained doctors and nurses.

Each trial requires a different group of volunteers. Factors that will be taken into account when assessing a volunteer's suitability for a specific study may include age, sex, height, weight, and smoking status.

Full information regarding each study is made available, and there is also an Informed Consent document for discussion before participants enter a study.

In recognition of the value of your time, we provide a stipend on completion of all studies. If at any time you wish to withdraw from a study, you will be compensated for the portion of the study you completed. The majority of our studies require that you stay in the facility overnight and for a certain number of days and attend any outpatient visits which may be required.

Register here if you are interested in becoming a volunteer with Charles River Clinical Services Northwest, or go to our Frequently Asked Questions for more information on clinical trials.