Data Monitoring in the Heart Outcomes Prevention Evaluation and the Clopidogrel in Unstable Angina to Prevent Recurrent Ischemic Events Trials: Avoiding Important Information Loss

Caution should always be exercised in considering early termination for any randomized clinical trial not only to avoid reacting to a temporary trend in the data, but also to avoid the loss of important treatment information concerning secondary outcomes, key subgroups, and patient safety data. For the Heart Outcomes Prevention Evaluation (HOPE) and Clopidogrel in Unstable Angina to Prevent Recurrent Ischemic Events (CURE) trials, their Data …