KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) -- Before a new drug can make it on the market, its affects have to be tested on people, and a group is performing some of those studies right here in town.

There are many different reasons why hundreds participate in medical studies, but the group that administers the tests says it's a very important process for almost every medication you have ever taken.

This is Matt Chamberlains second visit, for his first medical study.

Matt says, "One, it helps people. Two, I mean the money helps too. And, between the two of them, I get something out of it and somebody else gets something out of it too."

He's part of a group that donates blood so researchers can search for antibodies, in hopes of developing a vaccine for staph infections.

And Matt is just one hundreds of people that come to NOCCR and Volunteer Research Group.

Administering the studies out of UT Medical Center, they do the research for drug companies.

Operations Director for NOCCR and Volunteer Research Group, Sandy Gibson says, "When studies first start, they start out very small, very small doses, just to see how the body is going to handle it."

Sandy says the money study participants receive is just one reason some take part, for others it's a hope for a cure.

Sandy says, "There are some drugs that are out there but for Alzheimer's its very few, so they're able to get some of the new drugs that they wouldn't be able to get otherwise."

For some studies, the drug itself can help the participant financially.

Sandy says, "We get a lot of girls who are coming in, and we do a lot of women's health and we do a lot of new birth control and birth control patches; for them sometimes they'll get free drugs for a year and that's a good benefit for them."

But no matter what the participants reason, Sandy says the studies are very important and your medicine cabinet would look very different if it weren't for drug studies.

Sandy says, "We'll never have nay new therapies for any disease process, or any indication unless studies are done."

Matt says, "A lot of medical advances have been stuff like this."

Sandy says they explain to every participant exactly what kind of study they are taking part in, and for the future of the drug, they need to know any changes you may experience.

And depending on the study and how much time you have to put in, you can make anywhere from around one hundred dollars, to even a few thousand dollars in some cases.