A Qualitative Study of Motivations for Minority Recruitment in Cancer Clinical Trials Across Five NCI-Designated Cancer Centers

Abstract

Background Minority enrollment in cancer clinical trials is traditionally low. In light of this fact, numerous studies have investigated barriers to recruitment and retention within minority populations. However, very little research has investigated the importance of clinicians’ and researchers’ motivations for minority recruitment in cancer clinical trials. Therefore, we sought to examine motivations for minority recruitment across four professional stakeholder groups (principal investigators, clinicians, research staff, and Cancer Center leaders) at five National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers. Methods This study is based on the data from 91 qualitative interviews conducted across the five NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers to investigate stakeholders’ motivations for minority recruitment in cancer clinical trials. Results Emergent themes include (a) minority recruitment increases generalizability of cancer clinical trials, (b) minority recruitment is motivated by social justice, (c) some institutions promote minority recruitment through the use of supplemental financial support, (d) federal funding requirements for minority inclusion in clinical research motivate investigators to focus on minority recruitment, and (e) some stakeholders favor a more race-neutral approach to participant recruitment rather than an emphasis on targeted minority recruitment. Conclusion The perspectives of clinical and research stakeholders potentially inform the assessment of existing strategies and the development of new strategies to increase motivation for minority recruitment in cancer clinical trials.

Communication Regarding Therapeutic Clinical Trial Enrollment Between Oncologists and Adolescents and Young Adults with Cancer

“…Our population had limited racial and ethnic diversity and few publicly insured patients. Because racial and ethnic minorities historically have low rates of trial enrollment, [12][13][14][15][16][17][18] identifying communication experiences of underrepresented minorities is of special importance for future study.…”

“…Little work has focused on the role of patient-physician communication in AYA clinical trial enrollment, despite research implicating communication as a key factor affecting enrollment among older adults, especially minorities. [12][13][14][15][16][17][18] We surveyed newly diagnosed AYA patients at a single large academic cancer center regarding experiences with communication surrounding clinical trial enrollment, including whether therapeutic trials were offered and whether they chose to enroll, and compared AYA reports with medical record documentation of trial discussions and enrollment. The goal of this study was to understand AYAs' experiences with trial discussions at a large academic cancer center.…”