Clinical Trials

In a study published in the Journal of Cancer Education, two researchers provide an analysis of the clinical trial participation rates among cancer survivors in a variety of demographic groups. They initially note that racial disparities in clinical trial participation among cancer patients have been described, but that an overall age-adjusted demographic analysis is lacking....

Given the increasingly diverse makeup of the US population, culturally competent care is a popular topic of discussion nowadays among healthcare professionals in addition to physician burnout. Research does show, however, that culturally competent care is truly an important way to improve public health and health outcomes of diverse patients. Cultural competence is the ability...

In this study, published in The Laryngoscope, a team of researchers attempted to analyze the demographic characteristics of patients who participated in chronic rhinosinusitis clinical trials. The study’s goal was to identify discrepancies between the general population and the groups of individuals who participated in these trials. Because many clinical trials deviate from the general population,...

In this study, published in Pediatric Blood & Cancer, a team of researchers sought to understand the barriers that make it more difficult for children with cancer to be enrolled in clinical trials. They note that there are many different known barriers to clinical trial enrollment, varying widely from research infrastructure to a more general...

In this MD Newsline exclusive interview with trauma surgeon Dr. Nii Darko, we discuss how to cross cultural barriers and build trust in patient care. We also discuss health equity, vaccinations, and clinical trials as they relate to minority communities. MD Newsline: How do you cross cultural barriers to connect with your patients? Dr. Nii Darko:...

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is distributed heterogeneously across races and ethnicities. In particular, this condition disproportionately affects Hispanics. This article covers research into the inclusion of racial minorities in NAFLD clinical trials. Data for this study were taken from English-language studies in North America ranging from 2005-2019. Racial and ethnic enrollment data were extracted...

Staff Writer: Deileta Kamhunga Minorities have historically enrolled in oncology clinical trials at lower rates than whites. This study, published in Gynecologic Oncology, aimed to determine what role race plays in participation in gynecologic oncology clinical trials in an academic setting. It also sought to determine whether or not educational intervention can play a role...

Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) have been challenging to develop treatments for, partially due to insufficient recruitment in clinical trials. The factors underlying this low recruitment have not been well understood. This study, published in Cancer, compared patients with MDS that enrolled in intervention trials with those who did not. The study’s goal was to obtain a...

This review details how analytics can be used to enhance the sharing of clinical trial data among researchers to inform cancer disparities research. Clinical trial recruits are often young, healthy, and from less racially diverse groups. This lack of diversity leads to a larger problem with racial minority groups and older adults not being accurately...