Assessing baseline cancer demographics versus those that participate in cancer clinical trials over one year in Louisiana.

Abstract

e18546 Background: To determine which barriers exist for cancer clinical trial participation in Louisiana and define areas for improvement, we report cancer demographics of all new cancer diagnoses in Louisiana in 2019 and compare those to the baseline demographics of cancer patients that enrolled on a cancer treatment trial. Methods: A retrospective study evaluating baseline cancer demographics over 2019 was performed. Our baseline population included all new cancer diagnoses in patients 18+ registered with the Louisiana Tumor Registry (LTR) between January-December 2019. Baseline demographics were compared between all patients enrolled in a cancer treatment clinical trial in 2019 through the Gulf South Clinical Trials Network (GSCTN) versus those who were not. Summary statistics were performed with regards to basic cancer and patient demographics. Results: Although patients of the highest socioeconomic group made up, n = 5,444, (21.9%) of total cancers, a larger proportion, n = 35 (32.4%), p = 0.01 ultimately enrolled in a trial. Similarly, of those living in an urban area, n = 22,258 (84.5%), a larger proportion, n = 103 (92.8%), enrolled in a trial when compared to those that were not, p = 0.02. There was a significant positive correlation (p = 0.01) between clinical trial enrollment and residency in geographic areas with higher rate of high-school graduation. Our data also demonstrated that a smaller proportion, n = 7 (6.3%), of clinical trial participants died compared to those who did not participate, n = 5176 (19.6%), p < 0.01. Urologic cancer, including both prostate and bladder cancer, was the second most-diagnosed cancer primary site in Louisiana in 2019 with, n = 5481, patients diagnosed. Although black men made up, n = 1767 (32.2%) of diagnosed urologic cancer, only, n = 9 (14.1%), were accrued to participate in a urologic cancer clinical trial, p < 0.01. White men, who made up, n = 3661 (66.8%), of diagnosed urologic cancer, had a larger proportion, n = 55 (85%), of trial participation, p < 0.01. Conclusions: Overall, lack of geographic access proves to be a barrier for recruitment in clinical cancer trials. Patients of higher SES that live in urban areas make up a larger proportion of clinical trial participants and have better survival rates than those who do not participate. For specific cancers such as urologic cancer, further investigation on the cancer-specific inclusion and exclusion criteria must be investigated to determine the effect on equitable trial entry for populations in need. In conclusion, Louisiana offers a diverse cancer population, however, further efforts must be made to improve clinical trial access to our diverse and underserved populations.