title: Evaluation of eligibility and recruitment in breast cancer clinical trials.
abstract: Objectives of the study were to measure recruitment rates in clinical trials and to identify patients, physicians or trials characteristics associated with higher recruitment rates. Among patients who had a clinical trial available for their cancer, 83.5% (345/413) met the eligibility criteria to at least one clinical trial. At least one trial was proposed to 33.1% (113/341) of the eligible patients and 19.7% (68/345) were recruited. Overall recruitment was 16.5% (68/413). In multivariate analyses, trial proposal and enrollment were lower for elderly patients and higher in high cancer stages. Trials from pharmaceutical industry had higher recruitment rates and trials testing hormonal therapy enrolled more patients. Breast cancer patients' accrual to a clinical trial could be improved by trying to systematically identify all eligible patients and propose a trial to those eligible and to whom the treatment is planned to be equivalent to the standard arm of the trial.
authors.affiliation: Centre des Maladies du Sein Deschênes-Fabia, Hôpital du Saint-Sacrement, Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec, 1050 chemin Sainte-Foy, Québec City, QC G1S 4L8, Canada; Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec, Canada; Faculté de médecine, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada. Electronic address: julie.lemieux@uresp.ulaval.ca.
authors.forename: Julie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lemieux
authors.affiliation: Faculté de médecine, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada.
authors.forename: Geneviève
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Forget
authors.affiliation: Collège François-Xavier-Garneau, Québec City, QC G1S 4S3, Canada.
authors.forename: Olyvia
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Brochu
authors.affiliation: Centre des Maladies du Sein Deschênes-Fabia, Hôpital du Saint-Sacrement, Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec, 1050 chemin Sainte-Foy, Québec City, QC G1S 4L8, Canada; Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec, Canada; Faculté de médecine, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada.
authors.forename: Louise
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Provencher
authors.affiliation: Centre des Maladies du Sein Deschênes-Fabia, Hôpital du Saint-Sacrement, Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec, 1050 chemin Sainte-Foy, Québec City, QC G1S 4L8, Canada; Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec, Canada; Faculté de médecine, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada.
authors.forename: Guy
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Cantin
authors.affiliation: Centre des Maladies du Sein Deschênes-Fabia, Hôpital du Saint-Sacrement, Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec, 1050 chemin Sainte-Foy, Québec City, QC G1S 4L8, Canada; Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec, Canada; Faculté de médecine, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Desbiens
authors.affiliation: Centre des Maladies du Sein Deschênes-Fabia, Hôpital du Saint-Sacrement, Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec, 1050 chemin Sainte-Foy, Québec City, QC G1S 4L8, Canada; Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec, Canada; Faculté de médecine, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada.
authors.forename: Catherine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Doyle
authors.affiliation: Centre des Maladies du Sein Deschênes-Fabia, Hôpital du Saint-Sacrement, Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec, 1050 chemin Sainte-Foy, Québec City, QC G1S 4L8, Canada; Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec, Canada; Faculté de médecine, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada.
authors.forename: Brigitte
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Poirier
authors.affiliation: Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec, Canada.
authors.forename: Stéphanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Camden
authors.affiliation: Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec, Canada.
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Durocher
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D018579:Patient Selection; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Breast cancer; Clinical trials; Eligibility; Patient recruitment