Article: Cancer patients are offered 'last chance' experimental drugs.

Byline: Jenny Hope

TERMINALLY-ILL cancer patients will test experimental 'last chance'drugs, it was revealed yesterday.

The Department of Health has approved the scheme in an attempt to halve thecurrent ten years it takes for a new drug to gain a licence.

A unit at Bart's Hospital in London will be the first of 19 centres wherepatients can volunteer to be treated.

Any drug that shows promise will be fast-tracked in a bid to halve the normaltime taken in trials.

In the scheme, blood samples from patients trying a new drug are sent to anin-house laboratory for analysis.

Results can be given on the same day, providing an early indication whether ...

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