Adding Diversity to Clinical Trials

In a previous post, I described why I enrolled in a clinical trial at Stanford to treat my Hodgkin’s lymphoma. But I didn’t share the result: I received radiation therapy and chemotherapy — instead of the standard treatment of exploratory abdominal surgery — and I’m confident it helped me to be cancer free for the last 20 years.

However, my experience was unusual: Very few cancer patients participate in clinical trials and many aren’t even aware that they qualify for one. In order to advance cancer research, more participants are needed — especially ethnic and racial minorities who are vastly underrepresented in clinical trials.