New study shows this may hinder identifying patient financial needs and tracking outcomes of associated referrals.
Despite declines in overall cancer mortality in the United States, deaths from prostate cancer in Black men represent the greatest mortality disparity in oncology. Black men are two to four times more likely to die from prostate cancer than any other racial and ethnic group. Additionally, less than 5% of participants in oncology clinical trials are Black men. Clinical trials provide an avenue for patients to contribute to research findings for future generations and may offer access to cutting-edge therapies.
ACS is committed to enhancing racial diversity in clinical trials. To increase Black men with prostate cancer participation in clinical trials, ACS on July 9 announced a funding opportunity to support community oncology practices and hospitals in their efforts for clinical trial enrollment. Eligible practice-based applicants must have direct patient interaction and the capability to participate in clinical trials.
“Diversifying participation in clinical trials is crucial to decreasing prostate cancer deaths for everyone,” said Dr. William Dahut, chief scientific officer. “It's time to move beyond words and put into action a plan to help clinicians and patients. ACS is committed to supporting research and evidence-based care to improve the health of all communities.”
To better support efforts toward recruitment of patients to clinical trials, ACS will pair awarded community oncology and urology practices with the Trial Library platform, which provides patient identification and navigation support through software and technology-enabled services integrated in community practices. To build upon existing infrastructure and promote the sustainability of clinical trial enrollment efforts, ACS will support access to the PCCTC to help awarded teams enroll patients on hypothesis-driven trials of novel agents and combinations that could prolong the lives of patients with prostate cancer. “
Like and share the ACS LinkedIn post and Dr. Dahut's post on X about this news.
