Navigating Low-Income African Americans Through Cancer Clinical Trials

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): African Americans are underrepresented in clinical trials for breast and colon cancers. Public Health Television (PHTV), in partnership with the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center, proposes to increase clinical trial participation among low-income African Americans for these two cancers by developing DVDs to assist patient navigators with guiding low-income African Americans through a process of culturally relevant education about cancer treatment and clinical trials participation. Patient navigation refers to using lay members of the community to guide and support underserved populations through the process of obtaining diagnosis and treatment for cancer. NCI endorses patient navigation as a means to help underserved populations obtain more timely cancer treatment. PHTV will combine the concept of patient navigation with its proven process of culturally specific health communication to increase the rate of low-income African Americans participation in clinical trials for colorectal and breast cancers. Two specific aims will accomplish this objective. First, PHTV plans to produce a DVD series to assist patient navigators to guide low-income African American patients with an orientation to colon cancer treatment and participating in clinical trials. Second, PHTV will develop content for a DVD series to train patient navigators to assist low-income African American women with an orientation to breast cancer treatment and participation in clinical trials PHTV will identify and meet target group information needs with our proven culturally specific production process that uses members of the target population to design messages. Content outlines for DVDs will be developed with a culturally specific production process that uses focus groups and community meetings with low-income African Americans residing in Cleveland's public housing neighborhoods. A Patient Navigator Advisory Panel comprised of patient navigators working in urban sites across Ohio and in Harlem, NY will review content outlines for DVDs and validate feasibility. A Medical Advisory Panel comprised of representatives from cancer centers and the American Cancer Society will help formulate solutions to address barriers identified by target population and validate feasibility for evaluation plans that include a web-based tracking system. These efforts will enable PHTV to successfully launch and test a DVD based clinical trials navigator program in Phase II.