Between hope for a cure and concerns about risks: a study with volunteers in clinical trials with stem-cells

• Grant number: 11/20294-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: January 01, 2012
• End date: December 31, 2014
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Psychology - Social Psychology
• Principal Investigator: Mary Jane Paris Spink
• Grantee: Thiago Ribeiro de Freitas
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Humanas e da Saúde. Pontifícia Universidade Católica de São Paulo (PUC-SP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to investigate the access to therapies that involve the use of stem cells that are still under review, seeking to understand how people negotiate the ambivalence between the hope of a cure and the uncertainty over medical treatment still in an experimental phase. To achieve the objectives proposed in this research will be done case studies in order to reach the logic of singular life stories, which are constituted in complex situations. Will be done semi-structured interviews focused on the trajectory of these people in terms of access to therapeutic procedures, which are still in experimental stage. With the analysis of discursive material generated in these interviews, we intend to identify and understand how the repertoires are used to deal with Hope and Truth, to speak of experimental treatments and what are the criteria used to evaluate the potential benefits and risks, which may be present in these therapies.