Designs and Analyses of Studies of Historical Importance

Abstract

Over the past 40 years, there has been an abundance of publications concerning methodology for the design and analysis of epidemiological investigations and clinical trials, and many examples of such research have been reported in the medical literature. In this chapter, we review some of the basic designs appropriate for epidemiological investigations and clinical trials and give examples of applications of the methodology. Because we work in cancer research, a field in which many of the contemporary designs were developed and applied, our examples are taken primarily from publications in oncology. We will be concerned with basic designs and analysis techniques that have proven useful and not with new ideas that, as far as we know, have not been tried.