Canadian patients and physicians get a new accurate, one-stop database for cancer clinical trials

A new Canadian cancer trial database will cut down on uncertainty and time spent researching for physicians and patients seeking cancer clinical trials for adults. The database is run by the Canadian Cancer Society and Quebec Clinical Research Organization in Cancer (Q-CROC) and includes a telephone hotline to provide further support.Many physicians previously relied on clinicaltrials.gov, which was funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, before that project saw its funding cut. Now that website sports a banner warning visitors that information may not be current. Even before funding cuts, using the U.S. database was challenging as not all Canadian trials were included, and the site was not always up to date, leaving physicians and patients trying to figure out if a trial was still active.Cancer Trials Canada will include academic and pharmaceutical-led trials being conducted in Canada. The Canadian Cancer Society and Q-CROC will update the site so it remains current. Patients and physicians can search by various eligibility criteria, including cancer type and stage. It’s a tool that physicians can rely on and can direct patients and their family members to the database, said Dr. Rebecca Auer, executive vice-president of research and innovation at the Ottawa Hospital, CEO and scientific director of the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. She is also a Canadian Cancer Society-funded researcher.“Patients are a lot more interested in doing that themselves, looking at things themselves,” she noted.There’s live support from Canadian Cancer Society’s Cancer Information Hotline and Q-CROC’s Onco + for Quebec residents, so patients or physicians can get answers to questions about if the trial is right for them. “There’s a potential to have an actual person walk you through some of that,” Dr. Auer said.On the other end of the line will be a trained expert on clinical trials. While it won’t be staffed by an oncologist, it will be someone who understands clinical trials and can direct callers to the correct information or resource.The site also contains an explanation of clinical trials in plain language for patients who might not fully understand the purpose and procedures of clinical trials. “It’s quite amazing how many patients had never thought of clinical trials until they’re at that point in diagnosis and care when they’re starting to think about different options,” Dr. Auer said.As trusted sources of information, explanations from Canadian Cancer Society and Q-CROC could also help mend some of the perceptions of clinical trials, based on research in the past that did not have current-day ethical and regulatory standards. “Some patients were hurt by research in the past and I think there’s still that hesitation,” Dr. Auer said.Clinical trials offer a lot of hope, but the criteria for what patients are accepted is strict. Physicians may need to have conversations to help patients understand why they’re not eligible for certain trials, be it because of cancer type, stage or molecular profile. Oncologists are experienced in these conversations, Dr. Auer said.Canada’s previous trial database, run by the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer (CPAC), shut down in 2023 so it could hand over the work to the Canadian Cancer Society. CPAC helped fund the current database, Craig Earle, chief executive of CPAC, told the Globe and Mail. Quebec’s provincial clinical trials platform, Onco-Quebec, is now part of Cancer Trials Canada.Barriers to entering a clinical trial still exist for some Canadian cancer patients. One is that many trials focus on molecular biomarkers, and access to comprehensive molecular testing varies across Canada. “I think that’s one significant barrier we have to tackle at the provincial and federal level,” Dr. Auer said.There’s also a barrier in that patients often can’t cross provincial borders to participate in clinical trials in Canada. Despite these road blocks, the new database should help patients learn about clinical trial options they can access. “This is a fantastic first step and addresses what I see as a huge gap for patients and physicians to really have a comprehensive and updated, reliable source for clinical trials in this country.” Dr Auer said. The Cancer Trials Canada database can be found at cancertrialscanada.ca.It focuses on trials involving adults. Canada’s pediatric cancer trial database will remain at U-Link.care.

Canadian patients and physicians get a new accurate, one-stop database for cancer clinical trials

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