The Evolving Role of the Oncology Nurse in Clinical Trials

Nurses play a role in ensuring the patient's safety and comfort on clinical trials.

Nurses are vital experts to the multidisciplinary oncology team who continue to expand their role in meeting the needs of patients with complex cancer care needs. They have remained the most trusted professionals for over 20 years.¹

Whether practicing in an inpatient setting or outpatient infusion center, oncology nurses are instrumental to the lives of patients with cancer from primary prevention to the end of life, and the accompanying complex workloads require extensive knowledge and ongoing learning for these dedicated individuals to maintain expertise.² They possess effective communication skills, delivering information between the patient or caregiver and multidisciplinary team, as well as execute the treatment plan dictated by the oncologist, often involving educating patients about their disease, delivering treatments, maintaining health in the home setting, and managing symptoms.

Overlaps in care needs call for the knowledge of oncology nurses to venture beyond cancer into managing chronic illnesses, administering care in an ambulatory setting, and handling an increased volume of patients participating in clinical trials. Clinical trials in oncology have become paramount to improving the outcomes of those affected by cancer. The role of the nurse is to protect the well-being of enrolled patients as well as advance the current knowledge possessed by oncology experts.³

The initial requirement of the oncology research nurse in the outpatient setting is to obtain foundational knowledge by completion of training courses such as those provided by the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative Program. Such courses provide learners with the principles of research, regulatory requirements, compliance, and ethical principles. After completion, many organizations have skills-based trainings that allow the nurse the ability to translate learned knowledge to patients who are participating in clinical trials.

Oncology nurses are crucial to the execution of clinical trials because they are commonly seen as the patient’s most regular direct contact.⁴ Under the direction of the principal investigator and study coordinator, they administer the investigational drugs and any additional treatments required for the study, conduct ongoing assessments, and collect research samples. They are also responsible for notifying the principal investigator of any adverse events that may affect continuation of the trial treatment or symptom management. Finally, oncology nurses also help patients navigate the complexities of clinical trials as well as dispel negative notions that patients may have regarding research.

Across all practice settings, nurses are vital to clinical research for patients with cancer. It is estimated that more than 2 million people will be diagnosed with cancer in the United States in 2025.⁵ Despite this significant statistic, there has been a consistent decline in cancer rates, which can be attributed to early detection, research, and expansion of existing drugs to other cancer types.⁶ Oncology nurses must remain dedicated to being lifelong learners and keeping patients at the center of their evolving practice.

References

1. Ethics ratings of nearly all professions down in U.S. Gallup. January 22, 2024. Accessed April 28, 2025. https://news.gallup.com/poll/608903/ethics-ratings-nearly-professions-down.aspx
2. Young AM, Charalambous A, Owen RI, et al. Essential oncology nursing care along the cancer continuum. Lancet Oncol. 2020;21(12):e555-e563. doi:10.1016/S1470-2045(20)30612-4
3. Woltz PC, Moore AC. Good clinical practice. In: Klimaszewski AD, Bacon MA, Eggert JA, Ness EA, Westendorp JG, Willenberg K, eds. Manual for Clinical Trials Nursing. 3rd ed. Oncology Nursing Society; 2016:67-76.
4. Karam S. Nursing roles in clinical trials. Oncology Nursing Society. December 7, 2021. Accessed April 28, 2025. https://www.ons.org/publications-research/voice/news-views/12-2021/nursing-roles-clinical-trials
5. Siegel RL, Kratzer TB, Giaquinto AN, Sung H, Jemal A. Cancer statistics, 2025. CA Cancer J Clin. 2025;75(1):10-45. doi:10.3322/caac.21871
6. Rodriguez AL, Paez WA. The role of oncology nurses in clinical research. Oncology Nurse Advisor. April 1, 2025. Accessed April 23, 2025. https://www.oncologynurseadvisor.com/reports/role-oncology-nurses-clinical-research-treatment-risk/