Clinical Trial Protocol

**Semantic type:** Intellectual Product

**Definition:** A document that describes the objective(s), design, methodology, statistical considerations, and organization of a trial. The protocol usually also gives the background and rationale for the trial, but these could be provided in other protocol referenced documents. Throughout the ICH GCP Guideline the term protocol refers to protocol and protocol amendments. NOTE: Present usage can refer to any of three distinct entities: 1) the plan (i.e., content) of a protocol, 2) the protocol document, and 3) a series of tests or treatments (as in oncology). [ICH E6 Glossary]

**Synonyms:** - clinical protocol - protocol - protocol - study protocol