Abstract
Culturally-appropriate, educational programs are recommended to improve cancer clinical trial participation among African Americans and Latinos. This study investigated the effect of a culturally-appropriate, educational program on knowledge, trust in medical researchers, and intent for clinical trial participation among African Americans and Latinos in Middle Tennessee. Trained community health educators delivered a 30-min presentation with video testimonials to 198 participants in 13 town halls. A pre-post survey design was used to evaluate the intervention among 102 participants who completed both pre- and post-surveys one to two weeks after the session. Paired-sample t-test showed significant increases in unadjusted mean scores for knowledge (p < 0.001), trust in medical researchers (p < 0.001), and willingness to participate in clinical trials (p = 0.003) after the town halls in the overall sample. After adjusting for gender and education, all three outcomes remained significant for the overall sample (knowledge: p < 0.001; trust in medical researchers: p < 0.001; willingness: p = 0.001) and for African Americans (knowledge: p < 0.001; trust in medical researchers: p = 0.007; willingness: p = 0.005). However, willingness to participate was no longer significant for Latinos (knowledge: p < 0.001; trust in medical researchers: p = 0.034; willingness: p = 0.084). The culturally-appropriate, educational program showed promising results for short-term, clinical trial outcomes. Further studies should examine efficacy to improve research participation outcomes.
Highlights
African American and Latino communities continue to suffer disproportionately from cancer health disparities
Paired-sample t-test showed significant increases in unadjusted mean scores for knowledge (p < .001), trust in medical researchers (p < .001), and willingness to participate in clinical trials (p = .003) after the town halls in the overall sample
After adjusting for gender and education, all three outcomes remained significant for the overall sample and for African Americans
Summary
African American and Latino communities continue to suffer disproportionately from cancer health disparities. Less than 2% of minorities participate in clinical trials [7] and about 10% have donated biospecimens [8] This warrants great concern as the favorable effects of new early detection methods and treatments may not be generalizable across all groups if racial and ethnic minority groups are not adequately represented in the studies [9,10]. This fuels existing cancer disparities through promulgating unequal benefits of scientific advances – i.e., potentially promoting advances that favor socially advantaged groups and hindering advances that could improve outcomes for groups with the greatest needs [9,10]. Identifying barriers in recruitment is essential and a priority
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
