About clinical trials

Clinical trials are research studies that look at how well a treatment or ‘intervention’ works on people. Clinical trials for CF might look at:   

• a new medicine
• an existing medicine used in a new way
• stopping an existing treatment
• a medical device such as a nebuliser or app
• behavioural or lifestyle changes, such as modifying diet or physical activity. 

Find out what happens during a trial

Every medicine you and everyone you know has ever taken, even over-the-counter ones like paracetamol, will have gone through a clinical trial at some point. They matter to everyone. 

While we have seen huge developments in CF treatment over the last few decades, there is still a lot of progress to be made. This is particularly true for people who aren’t currently able to benefit from modulator treatments.

Over the next few years, we hope to see more trials in genetic therapies looking to treat the underlying cause of CF, as well as a focus on finding new and more effective ways to treat the symptoms of CF. For these developments to be possible, we need people with CF to support clinical trials. 

We are supporting a continuous pipeline of trials in the UK through our Clinical Trials Accelerator Platform (CTAP), looking at many different aspects of CF, CF treatment and care. 

Find out more about our impact through CTAP

You might come across terms for different types of clinical trial in CF. The type of trial depends on what the study aims to find out.

Find out more about types of trial

Clinical trials for new treatments go through several different steps or ‘phases’ before a treatment can be approved for use.

Find out more about trial phases

Clinical trials are set up and run by pharmaceutical companies, clinical researchers at hospitals or universities, doctors and other healthcare professionals. Sometimes we call the people who run trials ‘sponsors’. We support sponsors in a number of ways through the Clinical Trials Accelerator Platform (CTAP). If you’re a sponsor, see our information for sponsors.

Find out more about trial safety and ethics

Watch our video on how drugs get approved

We’ve created a clinical trials glossary where you can find out more about some common terms you may hear relating to CF clinical trials.

See the clinical trials glossary

Research is underway in the UK and globally to continue improving our understanding of CF and developing new CF treatments. Many of the trials coming up in the next few years aim to answer our top research priorities chosen by people with CF. 

Cystic Fibrosis Foundation has put together an interactive pipeline of the treatments currently being developed in the US, from those in preclinical studies to those already in clinical trials. 

The pipeline gives an idea of the range of treatments being developed in clinical trials globally, from genetic therapies to anti infectives to modulator therapies. While not all these studies will open in the UK, we anticipate some will at various points of their development.

Visit the CFF drug development pipeline

You may also find it useful to speak to your CF team to find out what kind of treatments they expect to see in clinical trials in the UK over the next few years. 

To stay up to date about the latest clinical trials:

• Sign up to our Clinical Trials and Involvement Newsletter for regular updates on clinical trials and involvement opportunities. 
• Follow our research news and blogs and regular updates on our social media channels
• Find trials that are currently recruiting on our Trials Tracker 

There are more opportunities than ever for people with CF to be involved in clinical trials. Our Trials Tracker makes it easy to find clinical trials that might be suitable for you. 

Find out how to find clinical trials