Increasing African-American participation in clinical trials

While African-Americans are more likely to be diagnosed with certain forms of cancer and are far more likely to die of the disease, they also are less likely to enroll in cancer clinical
trials, accounting for just 2.5 percent of participants nationwide.

At the 2009 American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) conference in Denver, investigators from Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center and Meharry Medical College reported the completion of a multi-year recruitment trial in which 68 percent of those minority patients eligible for a cancer clinical trial agreed to participate.

In 2000, VICC and Meharry investigators established a clinical trial shared resource at Nashville General Hospital at Meharry. Most of the patients at this facility are uninsured or underinsured, and 55 percent are African-Americans.

“We discovered that these minority patients were just as interested in clinical trials, but they were more likely to have logistical barriers that made enrollment difficult,” said Debra Wujcik, Ph.D., R.N., lead author and director of Clinical Trials at Meharry.

Those barriers – including missed appointments, lack of transportation, inadequate insurance, miscommunication and lack of patient understanding – were identified during the first year of the study and program procedures were adjusted during succeeding years to address them.

Since 2001, 1,125 patients have been screened, 343 (30 percent) had a study available, and 233 (21 percent) have enrolled. Overall, 68 percent of those eligible for a study agreed to participate.

“Clinical trials are discussed with the patient during the first conversation about treatment,” said Wujcik.
“The trial is not offered as an afterthought and patients do not have to go to another center. They can participate in a trial in their own cancer center and be cared for by the staff and doctor they know.”

– by Dagny Stuart