Recruiting minority cancer patients into cancer clinical trials: A pilot project involving the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group and the National Medical Association

Purpose: Minority accrual onto clinical trials is of significant interest t o cooperative oncology study groups. The Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) conducted ct study to identify barriers and solutions to African Am erican accrual onto clinical trials. Methods: We hypothesize that the National Medical Association (NMA) might p rovide insight into ways to increase minority participation and that ECOG m ight facilitate that participation. Four sites were selected in which NMA c hapters existed and ECOG main institutions with less than half of the corre sponding percentage of minorities in their communities entered trials for 1 992, Fifteen workshops were conducted using discussions and open-ended, ser f-administered questionnaires. Results: Seventy percent of NMA physicians cited mistrust of the research c enters, fear of losing patients, and a lack of respect from ECOG institutio ns as the most important barriers to minority cancer patient referrals, com pared with 30% for ECOG physicians. Sixty-nine percent of NMA and 43% of EC OG physicians cited a lack of information about specific trials. Nearly hal f of NMA physicians (47%) cited a lack of minority investigators as a barri er, compared with 4% of ECOG physicians. Solutions by both groups were impr oved communication (73%) and culturally relevant educational materials (40% ), ECOG physicians cited more minority outreach staff as a potential soluti on (22% v 6%). NMA physicians cited increased involvement of referring phys icians (44% v4%). Conclusion: NMA physicians who serve a significant sector of the African Am erican population demonstrated a willingness to participate and work with a cooperative group effort to increase participation of minority patients an d investigators. (C) 1999 by American Society of Clinical Oncology.