By Sanskriti (“Sans”) Thakur, CGO. As we celebrate Women’s History Month this March, the world takes a moment to recognise women’s accomplishments, while also highlighting the inequity that remains. When it comes to women’s health, those inequities are stark. And a contributing factor is the lack of women in clinical trials. When population representation falls short, medicines are less safe and effective. Measures such as the US Congress’s proposed DIVERSE Trials Act are helping drive equitable representation, but that’s just the beginning.

By Hady Khoury, Chief Development Officer, Medable. The life sciences industry has been talking about improving diversity in clinical trials for years. Historically, this talk has amounted to a lot of hot air. But the situation is urgent: while racial and ethnic minorities comprise nearly 40% of the US population, they only account for 2% to 16% of clinical trial participation. Within oncology, Black Americans constitute around 22% of cancer cases, but less than 5% of trial enrollees. This isn’t just a US issue; globally, 76% of patients enrolled in oncology trials are white. And this challenge exists within a research landscape where nearly 80% of trials fall short of enrollment targets to begin with.

‍

‍

By Ingrid Oakley-Girvan, PhD, SVP, Value and Strategy. As decentralized clinical trials (DCTs) become more prevalent, particularly in the wake of the pandemic, their lower burden approach can make participation more attractive for some. Yet the vexing issue of retaining participants throughout the course of a trial will continue to be problematic without a thoughtful approach to keep them engaged. A three-phase model of engagement, based on proven science and intelligently informed by utilizing data, can make important inroads into solving this long-standing challenge.