WOOPS! I was so wound up in BCG that I missed your question on clinical trials. I am not aware of any right now with BCG. Did you have any particular ones in mind?
Here is my PERSONAL take on clinical trials. I have worked with the FDA and the NIH and have seen many of them. There are several types....one type is where a drug company has a drug which is very similar to one that is already on the market, or one whose patent is about to expire. They want to be able to market this as something "new and exciting." These are the so-called "me too"
drugs. IMHO, not worth the effort, except when you need financial help and the drug is given to you free.
The second type is a trial of a new modality, or a drug that has been used in other types of cancers. This type of trial might be worth considering. I would want to know why they are considering this for bladder cancer. Also, how far along in testing is it?
HOWEVER, I wouldn't be looking at a clinical trial if there is a good treatment already available (ie, BCG.) If, however, I had failed BCG and had no other alternatives, I would definitely consider this type of clinical trial.
If you are offered a clinical trial, I would look very carefully at exactly what the purpose of the trial is. Just because something is a "clinical trial" this does not mean that it is necessarily a real benefit.
These are just my personal thoughts.
Sara Anne