Abstract
Background: Historically, fewer than 5% of cancer patients enroll in clinical trials and lack of physician participation is a contributing factor. In 1999, the American College of Surgeons Oncology Group (ACOSOG) conducted a multicenter breast cancer trial evaluating the prognostic value of sentinel lymph node (SLN) and bone marrow micrometastases. This report elucidates factors influencing patient accrual. Methods: Demographics of investigators (N = 198) and their success in accruing patients (N = 5327) were reviewed. ACOSOG Breast Committee members (N = 1136) were surveyed to identify factors influencing participation. Results: Surgeons from 126 institutions participated in Z0010 (academic [48%], teaching-affiliated [20%], and community [29%] practices), and 28% of surgeons accrued 75% of the subjects. Twenty-four percent of surgeons accrued 75% of minority patients. Female surgeons accrued 24% of patients and accounted for 30% of investigators. On survey, 16% of respondents reported no prior experience with clinical trials and a number of factors were identified that influenced participation. Conclusions: ACOSOG successfully accrued 5327 patients to a SLN trial with surgeon participation from all practice settings. However, significant barriers to participation remain.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 539-542 |
Number of pages | 4 |
Journal | American Journal of Surgery |
Volume | 190 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Oct 2005 |
Keywords
- Breast cancer
- Clinical trial participation
- Sentinel node
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Surgery