title: Assessing an intervention to improve clinical trial perceptions among predominately African-American communities in South Carolina.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  African Americans (AA) are not well-represented in cancer clinical trials despite having significantly higher cancer mortality rates than their European-American (EA) counterparts.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study was to evaluate a program to improve perceptions of cancer clinical trials among AA.
  
  
  METHODS
  The program was conducted in a convenience sample of 195 participants (75.4% AA) who lived in counties with high racial disparities in cancer mortality rates and who were recruited by community partners. The 30-minute program, part of a larger 3.5-hour cancer education program, was developed by the National Institutes of Health (NIH)/National Cancer Institute (NCI). It was modified to include additional pictures of AA, AA-specific cancer mortality data, and information about the Tuskegee Syphilis Study and the resulting improved participant protection measures.
  
  
  METHODS
  The seven-item Attitudes to Randomized Trial Questionnaire (ARTQ) was used to evaluate changes in trial perceptions from pre- to posttest. Additional survey items assessed general demographic characteristics.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Slightly more than half of the participants had at least a college diploma (54.4%), 45.1% were married/living as married, 53.3% were female, and 45.6% had an annual household income of less than $40,000. For each ARTQ item, most participants who had less favorable perceptions of trials at pretest changed to more positive perceptions at posttest (p < .001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Providing cancer clinical trial information led to more positive perceptions of cancer clinical trials. In future studies, the program could be used to help potential trial participants make informed decisions about participation; trial enrollment rates could then be evaluated.
authors.affiliation: Medical University of South Carolina, Vorhees College, USA.
authors.forename: Marvella
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ford
authors.forename: Amy
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wahlquist
authors.forename: Rashell
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Blake
authors.forename: CoDanielle
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Green
authors.forename: June
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Streets
authors.forename: Ebonie
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fuller
authors.forename: Erica
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jefferson
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Etheredge
authors.forename: Heidi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Varner
authors.forename: Shannon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.forename: Saundra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Glover
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Turner
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Garrett-Mayer
mesh_terms: D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology*; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods*; D054624:Health Status Disparities; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000208:ethnology*; D010465:Perception; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic / Q000523:psychology*; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013022:South Carolina; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires