Across the board, Latinos are underrepresented in clinical research. Without adequate Latino and minority representation in clinical trials, researchers cannot find differential effects among groups nor advance public health and medicine. To address this, researchers across the country, like those at the Glenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer’s and Neurodegenerative Diseases at UT Health San Antonio, are creating educational interventions to recruit certain racial/ethnic groups in diseases like Alzheimer's that are on the rise among minorities. "Studies should represent the demographics of the country," Dr. Jonca Bull, an assistant commissioner on minority health at the Food and Drug Administration, said in a recent statement. "We need to close that gap so we can better ...
Latinos face an uphill battle when it comes to their health. They suffer many inequities, which are worsened amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Beyond that, there is a historical lack of targeted research about these inequities and how to address them, and a lack of diversity in clinical trials. This is the focus of a new webinar, "Conversations on Cancer: Latino Community—Achieving Equity in Cancer Clinical Trials," set for 1 p.m. ET Thursday, Sept. 24, 2020. The event is sponsored by the FDA's Oncology Center of Excellence. Register for the webinar. Panelists are: Amelie G. Ramirez, DrPh, Director of Salud America!, Professor and Chair of the Department of Population Health Sciences, and Director of the Institute for Health Promotion Research, all at UT Health San Antonio
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Did you know that Latinos comprise less than 7.6% of clinical trial participants? This means that researchers have less chances to develop new cancer treatments for this population, which suffers a heavy burden of certain cancers, obesity, and mental health issues. Join us and use #SaludTues on Jan. 21, 2020, to tweet about how to increase Latino participation in clinical trials to prevent health disparities, in celebration of the quickly approaching Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos conference: WHAT: #SaludTuesTweetchat: Engaging Latinos in Clinical Trials
DATE/TIME: 1-2 p.m. EST (Noon-1 p.m. CST), Tuesday, January 21, 2020
WHERE: On Twitter with hashtag #SaludTues
HOST: @SaludAmerica
CO-HOSTS: FDA Minority Health & Health Equity ...
The importance of clinical trial participation cannot be overstated, especially among minority groups like Latinos. 1 in 6 individuals in the U.S. are Latino, yet only 1% participate in clinical trials. Despite the rapid growth of Latino populations all across the U.S., Latinos continue to lag behind in clinical trial participation. Why should we be concerned with getting more Latinos involved in clinical research trials?
Lack of Data on Latinos
While scientists continue to learn more about diseases like cancer, Alzheimer's disease and diabetes, through advances in genetics and medical technologies, the data collected is often not representative of the population. This means that new medicine or treatments may not be effective among Latinos, therefore it is crucial to ...
The rise of the Latino population makes it urgent to tackle disparities in obesity, diabetes, and cancer. But did you know fewer than 5% percent of Latinos participate in federal clinical trials? Researchers thus have less chance to develop new cancer treatments for this population, which suffers a heavy burden of certain cancers, obesity, and mental health issues. That's why we're excited to use #SaludTues on Oct. 16, 2018, to tweet about how to increase Latino participation in clinical trials to prevent health disparities, as Hispanic Heritage Month draws to a close! WHAT: Bilingual Tweetchat: “Hispanic Heritage Month: Latinos and Clinical Trials”
TIME/DATE: 1-2 p.m. ET (Noon-1 p.m. CT), Tuesday, Oct. 16, 2017
WHERE: On Twitter with hashtag #SaludTues
HOST: ...
Latinos often mistrust of doctors and scientists. In turn, they don't seek preventive healthcare or join helpful clinical trials. In fact, even though Latinos make up 17.8% of the national population and are the largest ethnic minority, Latinos comprised of less than 7.6% of clinical trial participants. The Global Institute for Hispanic Health aims to change all that.
Global Institute for Hispanic Health
The Texas A&M University System and Driscoll Children’s Hospital launched the Global Institute for Hispanic Health in 2016. It's based at Driscoll Children’s Hospital in Corpus Christi. It has other campuses in Brownsville, Harlingen, McAllen, Laredo, and Victoria. The Global Institute brings researchers, clinicians, and communities together to improve Latinos' ...
For years, studies have shown that Latinos have a profound mistrust of doctors and scientists. Consequently, Latinos participate in clinical trials at far lower rates than other ethnic groups, which perpetuates the health disparities seen with many diseases like Alzheimer’s and certain cancers. This also makes it harder for researchers to find treatments that work best for Latinos. Minorities actually represent less than 30% of those enrolled in clinical trials sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), according to a recent report. Latinos comprised less than 7.6% of trial participants. “There hasn’t been a single [prostate] screening trial including a significant number of Latinos or blacks … yet it impacts our practice and we have no data to know if it ...
Interactive videos featuring real Latina cancer survivors talking about clinical trials can help Latina breast cancer patients consider trials as a treatment option, according to a new pilot study led by Dr. Amelie Ramirez of UT Health San Antonio. The study, published in Translation Behavioral Medicine, tested the videos with 77 Latina breast cancer patients at Mays Cancer Center. Researchers randomly assigned 39 Latinas to a control group and 38 to a test group. Then test group received "Choices," a 30-minute interactive educational video program in English or Spanish about clinical trials and common barriers (delivered on a computer in the clinic). "Choices" also included a bilingual booklet and access to a patient navigator for care coordination. Control participants received ...
Latinos are less likely than their peers to join potentially life-saving clinical trials. They often fear being treated like a guinea pig, are scared of being deported, and don’t trust doctors. Yuritzy Gonzalez Peña wants to change that. Peña wants to bust the myths about clinical trials among Latinos, and also boost community health by promoting beneficial policies and improved health systems. Peña, a native of Salem, Ore., earned her bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in public health from Oregon State University. Because she understands the importance of evidence-based, practical, and multidisciplinary research, she is involved in many research projects. Her most recent projects have dealt with teen pregnancy in rural communities, chronic risk factors in migrant ...
