Diverse Representation in Clinical Trials Clinical trials, in which hundreds of thousands of patients are given drugs to measure their efficacy and safety, are the essence of pharmaceutical research. However minority populations — as well as women and the socio-economically disadvantaged — are currently underrepresented in clinical research trials. This lack of participation has contributed to a health care disparity. Without adequate representation of ethnic and racial minorities and other underserved populations, researchers are currently hindered in their assessment and generalization of clinical trial results.

Genentech's has launched a $5.5-million, four-year research effort with the Intercultural Cancer Council and the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston that aims to improve the participation of minorities and undeserved patients in clinical research trails. The Intercultural Cancer Council will study why there is not more diversity in clinical trials for cancer drugs, and the Chronic Disease Prevention and Control Research Center at Baylor College of Medicine will focus on asthma, where rates are much higher among inner-city children, particularly blacks.

The research project is divided into two arms, both focusing on retention and recruitment. The policy research arm will examine a wide range of issues relating to clinical trials, and the field studies arm will test different strategies in addressing barriers and facilitators to clinical trial recruitment. In the first part of the field studies arm, healthcare providers and potential clinical trial participants will be interviewed individually and in small groups to assess how clinical trials are perceived and how participation is offered to patients. From that assessment, a pilot recruitment model will be developed with specific tailoring for each minority population.

Genentech is committed to building long-term solutions and ensuring clinical trials for new treatments that are broadly representative of patient populations, so that clinical trials reach and retain a diverse cross-section of patients. Genentech is dedicated to giving everyone equal opportunity to potentially life-saving science.