Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 30, 2025
Acupoint Application Combined with Acupressure as an Adjunctive Therapy for Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea and Vomiting
Published on: June 21, 2024
[Acceptance and Related Causes of Clinical Trials among Cancer Patients in China]
Huiyao Huang1, Qi Fan1, Hong Fang1
1Department of Clinical Trials Center, National Cancer Center/National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100021, China.
Background:
The clinical trials of new anti-tumor drugs are prospering in China. The acceptance of clinical trials in patients is an important factor affecting the speed and quality of clinical trials. Previous studies have investigated the acceptance of clinical trials in those cancer patients, who have never participated in a trial. This study is designed to investigate and compare the acceptance and related causes of clinical trials in cancer patients who have once participated in a clinical trial or not.
Methods:
From June 2018 to April 2019, a standardized questionnaire-based survey was conducted among two groups of cancer patients classified by history of clinical trial participation in Cancer hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Science, mainly focusing on their overall acceptance of clinical trials and related considerations, including the role of attending doctors, as well as group differences between the two participants.
Results:
A total of 538 patients were enrolled with an average age of 53.5 years old, 51.1% of whom were males, and 43.3% of whom have never participated in a clinical trial. Overall, 502 patients (93.3%) were willing to or recommend their relatives or friends to participate in clinical trials, and patients with history of clinical trial participation had higher willingness (96.6% vs 90.8%, P=0.008). Patients were most likely to be motivated by expectation of optimal treatment (100.0% vs 99.3%) for both those who had once participated in a clinical trial or those not, respectively followed by financial burden reduction (56.0%) and recommendation by attending doctor (43.7%). The main reasons for unwillingness-to-participate for those who had once participated in a clinical trial were abandoning other treatment options, divided into control group or additional visits, while for those who had never participated in a clinical trial, ineffective treatment or serious adverse reactions were their main concerns. In the decision-making of clinical trial participation, 88% patients highly valued the role of recommendation by attending doctors. Among patients without trial participation history, 60.9% of those had no unwillingness-to-participate expressed that recommendation by attending doctors would change their decisions. The study also reported patients' preferences for information and access to clinical trials.
Conclusions:
The acceptance of clinical trials in cancer patients in our hospital is generally high, especially in patients who had a history of trial participation. It's of substantial significance to give full play to the role of doctors in improving the acceptance of clinical trials of cancer patients in China.
Insights
Cancer patients in China show high acceptance for clinical trials, particularly those with prior experience. Doctors play a crucial role in encouraging participation in anti-tumor drug trials.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Clinical Research
- Patient Advocacy
Background:
- Clinical trials for anti-tumor drugs are expanding in China.
- Patient acceptance is key to trial speed and quality.
- Prior studies focused on naive participants; this study compares experienced and naive patients.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate and compare acceptance of clinical trials among cancer patients with and without prior trial experience.
- To identify factors influencing participation decisions in both groups.
Main Methods:
- A questionnaire-based survey was conducted from June 2018 to April 2019.
- Two groups of cancer patients were compared: those with and without prior clinical trial participation.
- Focus on overall acceptance, influencing factors, and the role of attending physicians.
Main Results:
- Overall acceptance was high (93.3% willing to participate or recommend).
- Patients with prior trial experience showed higher willingness (96.6% vs. 90.8%, P=0.008).
- Key motivators included optimal treatment expectation, financial benefits, and doctor recommendation. Concerns differed between groups: experienced patients worried about abandoning other treatments, while naive patients feared ineffectiveness or adverse events. Attending physicians' recommendations significantly influenced decisions, especially for naive patients.
Conclusions:
- Cancer patient acceptance of clinical trials in China is high, particularly among those with prior experience.
- Leveraging the role of physicians is critical for enhancing clinical trial acceptance among Chinese cancer patients.
Related Concept Videos
01:16Clinical Trials
There are four phases in a clinical trial. A phase one...
01:11Clinical Trials: Overview
02:57Targeted Cancer Therapies
There are several types of targeted therapies against...
01:21Cancer Survival Analysis
02:49Cancer Therapies
However, cancer treatments can pose several challenges, as therapies used to kill cancer cells are generally also toxic to normal cells. Moreover, cancer cells mutate rapidly and can develop resistance to chemical agents or radiation therapy. Besides, all types of cancer cells may not respond to the same therapy. Some cancer cells respond to one...
01:23Types of Biopharmaceutical Studies: Controlled and Non-Controlled Approaches
Non-controlled studies, commonly employed for initial exploration, lack a control group, rendering them susceptible to biases and external influences. In contrast,...