May 2021.
46% of Cancer Patients and Caregivers Unaware of Clinical Trial Participation as a Treatment Option 50% of Early Breast Cancer Patients Experience Lowered Sex Drive After Diagnosis.
Belong.Life, developer of social and professional networks for managing and navigating diseases, and the creator of the world’s largest social network for cancer patients, today announced that the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) has published two abstracts in its 2021 Annual Meeting Abstract Book based on data aggregated from the Belong Beating Cancer Together app. The abstracts provide key insights into significant challenges for oncology patients, including sexuality and clinical trial participation.
“Belong.Life strives to provide true value for the global cancer community through our quality real-world data and advanced technology – for patients, caregivers, health professionals, providers and pharma,” said Belong.Life CEO Eliran Malki. “We are deeply committed to helping advance the state of cancer research, and our AI capabilities offer great understanding into patient journeys, providing invaluable insights for physicians and patients alike. We thank our doctors and researchers who developed these studies, as well as the committed Belongers who participated.”
The first study (abstract e24118) examined the reasons behind the extremely low level (~3%) of clinical trial participation among cancer patients. Clinical trial participation is crucial for medical advancement and is an important treatment option, at times the only one, for oncology patients. Of the 290 study participants, 46% had not even heard of clinical trial participation as a treatment option, with 92% of that group expressing the desire to learn more about it. Among the 156 participants who were aware of clinical trials, 33% heard about it from medical staff, 26% from multiple online resources, and 25% through the Belong Beating Cancer Together app. Only 8% of study participants had previously participated in a clinical trial.
This study highlights the importance for the oncological community to not only inform, but personally tailor clinical trial information to cancer patients and caregivers, and stresses how digital health platforms are an important source for driving awareness of clinical trials.
