Minority Recruitment In Clinical Trials Research Articles

Design and implementation of a massive open online course on enhancing the recruitment of minorities in clinical trials \u2013 Faster Together

BackgroundRacial and ethnic minorities are often underrepresented in clinical trials, threatening the generalizability of trial results. Several factors may contribute to underrepresentation of minorities in clinical trials, including lack of training for researchers and staff on the importance of diversity in clinical trials and effective strategies for recruiting and retaining minority populations.MethodsApplying community engaged research principles, we developed a massive open online course (MOOC) to help research team members develop knowledge and skills to enhance the recruitment of minorities in clinical trials. A transdisciplinary working group, consisting of clinical researchers, community engagement specialists, minority clinical trial recruitment and retention educators and specialists, and knowledge management information scientists, was formed to develop an evidence-based curriculum. Feedback from the Recruitment Innovation Center Community Advisory Board was incorporated to help finalize the curriculum. The course was implemented in Coursera, an online learning platform offering MOOCs. A bootstrap paired sample t-test was used to compare pre- and post-assessments of knowledge, attitudes, and intentions as it relates to minority recruitment.ResultsThe final course, entitled Faster Together, was divided into eight 1-h modules. Each module included video presentations, reading assignments, and quizzes. After 10 months, 382 individuals enrolled in the course, 105 participants completed the pre-test, and 14 participants completed the post-test. Participants’ knowledge scores were higher with an increase in the mean number of correct answers from 15.4 (95% CI:12.1–18.7) on the pre-test to 18.7 (95% CI:17.42–20.2) on the post-test. All post-test respondents (n = 14) indicated that the course improved their professional knowledge, and 71.4% of respondents indicated that they were very likely to make changes to their recruitment practices.ConclusionsFaster Together, a massive open online course, is an acceptable, accessible approach to educating research teams on minority recruitment in clinical trials. Preliminary evidence indicates the course increased knowledge on how to recruit minorities into clinical trials and could promote change in their recruitment practices.

FDA Analysis of Screen Failures By Race in Clinical Trials of Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Background: Ethnic and racial minorities are underrepresented in oncologic clinical trials. One potential barrier to participation may be narrow eligibility criteria which contribute to an increased rate of screen failure among minorities. Prior work in multiple myeloma demonstrated a higher rate of screen failure among black or African-American (AA) patients and lower rate of screen failure among Asian patients compared with white patients (1). Here, we examine screen failure rates by race in patients screened for participation in clinical trials of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Methods: Trials submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to support approval of new treatments for AML between 2016-2019 were examined. Trials which included information on screen failures and race were included. Trial, screen failure status, basic demographic information (age, gender, race, and ethnicity), country of participant, and reason for screen failure (if relevant) were abstracted from the trials. Screen failure rates were calculated based on this information. Results: Twenty-one trials of AML therapies were identified, of which screen failure and race information were available in fourteen. Of these, information on reason for screen failure was available in nine. A total of 6,471 patients were identified across fourteen trials (Table 1). Race was recorded as unknown for 2,934 (46%) of patients. A total of 3,372 (52%) screen failures occurred. Minorities were more likely to be screen failures at 201/603 (33%) compared to whites at 27%. Of minorities, screen failures occurred in 29% of black/AA patients, 36% of Asians, and 36% of patients of any other race. A total of 579 patients were included in the nine trials that included data on reasons for screen failures (Table 2). Lack of appropriate mutation (i.e. IDH1/2, FLT3) was the most common reason for screen failure overall and was more common in black/AA (41%) and Asian patients (66%) compared to white patients (29%). Other issues related to the disease course (e.g. not at the appropriate point in treatment, not treated within the time limit set in the protocol) led to screen failure in 28% black/AA patients versus 9-22% for other races (19% overall). White patients were more likely than patients of other races to be screen failures due to cardiac issues (4%) and laboratory abnormalities (6%). Conclusions: Minority patients were numerically more likely to be screen failures compared to whites in trials of AML therapeutics, which exemplifies the known issue of lower minority recruitment in clinical trials. Minority patients were more likely to be screen failures due to lack of appropriate mutation and less likely due to lab abnormalities or cardiac issues. The significance of this finding is uncertain given the limited information on reasons for screen failure and the small number of minority patients in the database. Further investigation into screen failures in minority patients with AML is indicated. These results underscore the importance of including racial and ethnic minorities in all phases of translational and clinical research to further precision oncology for all patients since oncogenic driver mutation frequencies may vary among different populations. (1) Kanapuru B, Fernandes L FDA analysis of multiple myeloma trials supporting approval; Presented at FDA-AACR workshop to examine under-representation of African Americans in multiple myeloma clinical trials 2/13/20 Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

Perspectives on barriers and facilitators to minority recruitment for clinical trials among cancer center leaders, investigators, research staff, and referring clinicians: Enhancing minority participation in clinical trials (EMPaCT)

BACKGROUNDThe study of disparities in minority recruitment to cancer clinical trials has focused primarily on inquiries among minority populations. Yet very little is known about the perceptions of individuals actively involved in minority recruitment to clinical trials within cancer centers. Therefore, the authors assessed the perspectives of cancer center clinical and research personnel on barriers and facilitators to minority recruitment.METHODSIn total, 91 qualitative interviews were conducted at 5 US cancer centers among 4 stakeholder groups: cancer center leaders, principal investigators, research staff, and referring clinicians. All interviews were recorded and transcribed. Qualitative analyses of response data was focused on identifying prominent themes related to barriers and facilitators to minority recruitment.RESULTSThe perspectives of the 4 stakeholder groups were largely overlapping with some variations based on their unique roles in minority recruitment. Four prominent themes were identified: 1) racial and ethnic minorities are influenced by varying degrees of skepticism related to trial participation, 2) potential minority participants often face multilevel barriers that preclude them from being offered an opportunity to participate in a clinical trial, 3) facilitators at both the institutional and participant level potentially encourage minority recruitment, and 4) variation between internal and external trial referral procedures may limit clinical trial opportunities for racial and ethnic minorities.CONCLUSIONSMultilevel approaches are needed to address barriers and optimize facilitators within cancer centers to enhance minority recruitment for cancer clinical trials. Cancer 2014;120(7 suppl):1097–105. © 2014 American Cancer Society.

Minority Recruitment In Clinical Trials: A Conference at Tuskegee, Researchers and the Community

PURPOSE: This article describes the planning, implementation, and evaluation of a 2-day conference designed to examine the factors related to the participation of African Americans in cancer clinical trials. METHODS: Pre-conference formative evaluations (e.g., focus group discussions and key informant interviews with community leaders and health providers) were conducted in several rural and urban counties in the state of Alabama to determine African Americans' perceptions of participation in clinical research. The findings from these evaluations were used to develop a conference format and agenda. The 2-day conference included: (i) a pretest of African Americans' perceptions of cancer research, participation factors, and communication and recruitment issues; (ii) individual presentations highlighting community leaders, church leaders, and researchers' perspectives regarding minority participation in research; (iii) working group discussions regarding the barriers and solutions to minority participation in research; and (iv) a posttest evaluation to measure changes in African Americans' perceptions of research. RESULTS: Several recruitment barriers and solutions were identified and reported by the working groups. Comparisons of the pretest and posttest measures showed significant ( p > .05) and favorable shifts in the areas of perceptions of cancer research, participation factors, communication issues, and recruitment issues. Participation in the conference reflected a positive change in attitudes on these measures. However, the theme, “barriers that contributed to nonparticipation,” did not show any significant changes during the two testing periods. The most critical lesson that resulted from this conference was the need for researchers and community members to have open dialogue about participation in research. CONCLUSIONS: This conference demonstrated that progress can be made when all parties are at the “table” and can be heard. In this model, community members proved to be valuable resources in providing researchers with information that was vital to the success of recruitment and retention studies and trials.

19A Challenge of minority recruitment in clinical trials: Experience of the African American study of kidney disease and hypertension (AASK) Pilot Study

19A Challenge of minority recruitment in clinical trials: Experience of the African American study of kidney disease and hypertension (AASK) Pilot Study

19A Challenge of minority recruitment in clinical trials: Experience of the African American study of kidney disease and hypertension (AASK) pilot study

19A Challenge of minority recruitment in clinical trials: Experience of the African American study of kidney disease and hypertension (AASK) pilot study

The Challenge of Minority Recruitment in Clinical Trials for AIDS

RECENT efforts to extend clinical acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) research trials to urban, poor, minority communities suggest that a new paradigm is required to make such efforts succeed. This new paradigm must reflect the special needs of these communities and should recognize historical distrust of clinical trials and the need for extensive educational and social support services. The AIDS epidemic has focused attention on research and access to experimental therapy. The intensity of public debate may be new, but the problems are not. The proper sampling of a heterogeneous population has long been an important consideration in epidemiologic and clinical research, and it is well appreciated that race can affect disease severity and progression as well as response to drug therapy. A number of studies have shown differences between African Americans and whites in response to antihypertensive therapy.^1-3These studies suggest that race is an important consideration when planning and

The challenge of minority recruitment in clinical trials for AIDS

The challenge of minority recruitment in clinical trials for AIDS