Clinical trials networks and enrollment of historically underrepresented populations in medical oncology trials

e20598 Background: Oncology research is limited by the very low number of patients accrued into clinical trials. Clinical trials networks may help to overcome this limitation by allowing investigations designed through academic centers to be available to patients seen in community practices that are far from these centers. This allows for increased accrual and access for these patients while potentially increasing the pace of progress in clinical oncology research. Methods: In this study, we attempted to determine the effect that clinical trials networks can have on the accrual of cancer patients into clinical investigations. We retrospectively analyzed the records from 2002–2008 of a private practice located over 150 miles from an academic center for accrual into trials. This practice is a member of a clinical trials network affiliated with a major academic cancer center. Accrued patients were divided into subgroups based upon type of malignancy, ethnicity and whether or not they were elderly. In additio...