Frank Hovis Posted October 16, 2015 Share Posted October 16, 2015 I was intrigued to see this pop on as an advert on the Mail (link below, best I can do on my phone) and had a read. You get paid £100 a day plus free accommodation and food whilst helping medical progress. I am slightly biased against this as an older brother of a childhood friend was found dead in his London flat, cause of death unknown but he had been earning money through medical trials. I'm sure that these days standards are much higher than back then so it's going to be much safer, but I haven't heard of anybody doing it since. Anybody on here done it or considering doing it? If so is there huge demand so you can pretty much make a living from it, or is it a two weeks every few years kind of frequency? http://trialstoday.co.uk/?utm_source=Mail%20Online&utm_medium=Banner&utm_campaign=Display Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porca misèria Posted October 16, 2015 Share Posted October 16, 2015 It's a running gag on Radio 4's "Ed Reardon's Week". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Masked Tulip Posted October 16, 2015 Share Posted October 16, 2015 Recall several years back several men became seriously ill on one particular drug trial - bodies and heads swelled considerably. Not sure if any died. It was quite a news story at the time. Edit: Here it is - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/4807042.stm http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-559760/Elephant-Man-drug-trial-victim-set-win-2million-payout-losing-toes-fingers.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dgul Posted October 16, 2015 Share Posted October 16, 2015 Anybody on here done it or considering doing it? If so is there huge demand so you can pretty much make a living from it, or is it a two weeks every few years kind of frequency? I've been on the other end of clinical trials. They're generally OK, but note that there are sometimes side effects which while (supposedly) not harmful in any way are a bit of a hassle. Generally it is the sort of thing that some people just shrug off, while others find more difficult to cope with. All the info will be on the consent forms in an easy to understand language, so if you do volunteer make sure you read them fully and don't proceed if you're not happy with it in any way. If any information isn't easy to understand/is confusing then raise this with the people running the trial as it ought to be. You can't really make much of a living doing them - you can't do two trials concurrently and there are time limits between successive trials so you can't stay on them (if you proceed you'll be registered and your participation will be tracked ('TOPS') to avoid this sort of thing). The delay between trials depends on the drugs, but I'd be surprised if you'd be able to do more than about 4-5 a year. That said, the money can be very good if you're hard up, and it can be an interesting/easy way to spend a few days if you're bored... I've even done a few myself, but not for a few years now. All a pretty mild experience, frankly. But I have different calls on my time these days and they aren't that convenient really (the ones I was on had lots of overnight stays, but even the non-overnight ones have inconvenient trips to the clinics). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrPin Posted October 16, 2015 Share Posted October 16, 2015 You could always go to Porton Down holiday camp to end up with something horrible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Hovis Posted October 16, 2015 Author Share Posted October 16, 2015 Thank you dgul, that's pretty much answered everything I was wondering about. I'm not considering them myself but I have known people who have been really hard up and for whom it would have been a paid break with little risk (TMT's story is from 2006 so you are more likely to be run over by a bus). It seems like one of those easy temp jobs for people who don't want orthodox work, with house-sitting being another. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knock out johnny Posted October 16, 2015 Share Posted October 16, 2015 I've been on the other end of clinical trials. They're generally OK, but note that there are sometimes side effects which while (supposedly) not harmful in any way are a bit of a hassle. Generally it is the sort of thing that some people just shrug off, while others find more difficult to cope with. All the info will be on the consent forms in an easy to understand language, so if you do volunteer make sure you read them fully and don't proceed if you're not happy with it in any way. If any information isn't easy to understand/is confusing then raise this with the people running the trial as it ought to be. You can't really make much of a living doing them - you can't do two trials concurrently and there are time limits between successive trials so you can't stay on them (if you proceed you'll be registered and your participation will be tracked ('TOPS') to avoid this sort of thing). The delay between trials depends on the drugs, but I'd be surprised if you'd be able to do more than about 4-5 a year. That said, the money can be very good if you're hard up, and it can be an interesting/easy way to spend a few days if you're bored... I've even done a few myself, but not for a few years now. All a pretty mild experience, frankly. But I have different calls on my time these days and they aren't that convenient really (the ones I was on had lots of overnight stays, but even the non-overnight ones have inconvenient trips to the clinics). Robert Rodrigrez managed to fund his first film El Mariachi with medical tests (admittedly it was shot on a budget of $7000) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Hovis Posted October 16, 2015 Author Share Posted October 16, 2015 You could always go to Porton Down holiday camp to end up with something horrible. Actually Mr Pin I was trying to source new employment for your good self. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porca misèria Posted October 16, 2015 Share Posted October 16, 2015 Actually Mr Pin I was trying to source new employment for your good self. Damn, where's the upvote button on HPC? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrPin Posted October 16, 2015 Share Posted October 16, 2015 Actually Mr Pin I was trying to source new employment for your good self. Porton Down is not the place for me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest eight Posted October 16, 2015 Share Posted October 16, 2015 Robert Rodrigrez managed to fund his first film El Mariachi with medical tests (admittedly it was shot on a budget of $7000) I love the bit in The Color Of Money where Forest Whitaker claims to have been the subject of medical experiments whilst comprehensively hustling Fast Eddie Felson. So perhaps combine with pool sharking for a more diversified portfolio? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turned Out Nice Again Posted October 16, 2015 Share Posted October 16, 2015 I love the bit in The Color Of Money where Forest Whitaker claims to have been the subject of medical experiments whilst comprehensively hustling Fast Eddie Felson. So perhaps combine with pool sharking for a more diversified portfolio? Best scene in the movie. Very true to life. The best hustlers make you like them while they are taking your money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steppenpig Posted October 16, 2015 Share Posted October 16, 2015 I've always been interested, but never got round to it. As I've got older, I've got more nervous about it though. One thing was seeing how my elderly father reacted to even basic things like antibiotics, which made him go la la, and you realise that maybe messing with the functioning of our bodies has consequenses that we hadn't even realised. it'S frightening how little the scientific and medical establishment really knows about our bodies and the general reluctance to question the orthodoxy. (eg nutrition generally, statins, etc) Saw a documentary recently about blood tranfusions during surgery lead to a much higher risk of cancer of all types in later life. I don't suppose those on medical trials get followed up for more than a few months. Anyway, I suppose the studies are mostly in London, which would also be a disincentive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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