Studies show older adults often get left out of trials, even though many conditions affect them more often. The Aging Untold hosts spent their discussion on how to choose a study and how to decide whether to join one.
Rogers pushed back on the idea that a trial is a last resort. She said one of the biggest benefits is access, "great access to tomorrow's medicines today." That includes devices and therapies that won't reach everyone else for years.
To find a study, Rogers pointed people to ClinicalTrials.gov, their own physician, and academic centers. Organizations focused on a specific disease or condition sometimes run their own studies too.
Participants can get close monitoring and specialist care, Rogers said. Many studies cover costs like gas. Aging expert Amy O'Rourke said the National Institutes of Health keeps a list of trials.
O'Rourke also warned about placebos. "You might be the one getting the placebo, you might get the drug itself," she said, so people should walk in knowing that.
And the money part? "Some of them even pay you for the study," Rogers said.