What is the primary goal of clinical phase 2 trials in drug development?

The correct answer is not A. In clinical phase 2 trials, the primary goal is to evaluate drug effectiveness and side effects in larger groups of patients. This phase follows phase 1 trials where the focus is primarily on safety and dosing in a small number of healthy volunteers. Phase 2 trials aim to gather more information on how well the drug works and its potential side effects in a larger sample of patients with the targeted disease or condition. This phase helps determine if the drug has enough potential benefits to justify further testing in larger and more diverse groups of patients in phase 3 trials.