Today is Clinical Trials Day – celebrated to bring more attention to public health and also to recognize the contribution of the patients and healthcare professionals who make clinical research possible. At PatientsLikeMe, it’s members who are changing the way clinical trials are designed.
Bringing the patient voice to clinical trials has long been part of the PatientsLikeMe mission. Jeremy Gilbert, Vice President, PLM Health and Paul Wicks, Ph.D., Vice President, Innovation, sat down with us last year to talk about the importance of putting patients at the center of drug discovery and development. Check out their Q&A here. Recently, Paul Wicks touched on the purpose behind the latest PatientsLikeMe study on clinical trial design involving the patient perspective, and why organizations need to work on improving their trial process:
"As researchers we know that clinical trials are the best tool we have for identifying new, safe, effective treatments. Patients know this, too, and they're motivated to take part. But what this research tells us is that actually participating in a trial is not a fun experience; about as much fun as dealing with the worst airlines, banks, or utility companies, and we all know how that can be. This is a call to action to trial designers and sponsors to step up their game and understand that while patients volunteer out of altruism, a clinical trial still has to fit into their daily life and should create as little burden as possible if we want people to enroll and see it through to the end."
-Paul Wicks
4,718 PatientsLikeMe members took part in the survey, and below is just a snippet of what they had to say. The complete findings of this study have also recently been published – take a look!
How do patients learn about clinical trials?
59% of those who responded said they learned about a trial from their health team, while 24% said they learned via the web. For those who participated in past trials, the first person to suggest they participate was a doctor (43%) or another healthcare provider (19%), and 80% of respondents said they took part in the trial based on their own desire to.
A key takeaway from the study:
Most people are still finding out about trials through their care teams or providers, but when it comes to making a decision to take part, it’s their own desire that motivates them.
Paul Wicks weighed in saying, “We think patients are interested in participating in research in general because of altruism, that they choose to enroll in a particular trial because of its objectives, and that they stay enrolled because of their relationship with trial staff and the level of burden the study incurs on their daily lives.”
What are patients’ impressions of clinical trials?
Of those who responded, 55% were very or extremely satisfied, and 51% would tell other patients about the trial.
Jeremy Gilbert touched on the issue of patients providing feedback following a trial, “We’re starting to see another gap now, which is that companies have no way of soliciting feedback from patients as they participate in a trial, to find out what patients think of real trials. This is a surprise, because given most of us are consumers, we’re used to being able to give feedback about a product or our experience at any time.”
9% of those who answered the survey considered dropping out of their trial — side effects and worsening of overall health after the trial were the main reasons. Following the conclusion of a trial only 38% of patients recall being told about the results.
To find out more about clinical trials and how to get involved, visit the PatientsLikeMe clinical trial finder tool. Find a trial that’s right for you, search by location, phase, intervention type and more.
Thank you to all who participated and shared their experiences to help bring the patient perspective into improving clinical trials.
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