With low participation rates in clinical trials, researchers are constantly seeking new methods to alter cancer patients’ perceptions and negative attitudes toward clinical trial involvement. In a recent study, researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center offered 2 different kinds of intervention to 2 groups of adults with cancer who had not yet been offered participation in clinical trials.
The study findings, published in a recent issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology, show a multimedia psychoeducational intervention to be more effective in changing patients’ perceptions and attitudes toward clinical trials than standard educational literature.
According to study lead author Paul B. Jacobsen, PhD, senior member at Moffitt and associate center director for Population Science, low patient participation rates point to the need to create interventions that will encourage patients to enroll in clinical trials. Many interventions used in the past, researchers noted, were dedicated to enhancing the consenting process rather than improving negative attitudes about clinical trials.
Jacobsen explained, “We hypothesized that the right intervention would have a positive impact in changing perceptions and attitudes towards participation.”
The 472 patients involved in the study had not previously been asked to participate in a clinical trial and were split into 2 groups. The 1st group viewed a new, 18-minute multimedia psychoeducational presentation. The 2nd group received existing, printed clinical trial educational materials.
The researchers wrote, “The group receiving the multimedia psychoeducational intervention developed a more positive attitude and demonstrated an increased willingness to enroll in a clinical trial when compared with the group receiving printed educational material.”
Furthermore, researchers noted that, “The psychoeducational multimedia presentation requires relatively little time, effort and resources to deliver.”
Source: Moffitt Cancer Center.