Driscoll Children's Hospital in Corpus Christi, Texas, and Texas A&M University Health System are launching a national effort intended to improve Hispanics' participation in clinical trials.
Only about 1% of clinical trial participants in the U.S. are Hispanic even though they account for 16% of the U.S. population, according to a 2011 FDA report. Experts say there previously has not been much outreach to the population.
The Hispanic Health Institute will be located at Driscoll and will reach citizens of southern Texas through Driscoll's specialty clinics and Texas A&M academic units, according to a news release. Driscoll Children's serves 31 counties in south Texas and Texas A&M has 11 colleges statewide. The program also will partner with national and local providers and organizations.
Texas A&M University and Driscoll will continue research focused on health disparities among the Hispanic population. Approximately $2 million has been funded so far for the program.
About 38.8% of the Texas population is Hispanic or Latino. Heart disease and cancer are the two leading causes of death for Hispanics, accounting for about 2 of 5 deaths, which is almost the same for whites, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention May 2015 Vital Signs report.
“We are making this investment because almost four in 10 Texans could benefit from greater research focused on the Hispanic population,” said John Sharp, chancellor of the Texas A&M University System. “We hope to change the landscape of clinical trials in Texas.”
Hispanic individuals likely participate in clinical trials at a lower rate because there are not enough efforts by research institutions to engage the population, said Dr. Robert Sherwin, director of the Yale Center for Clinical Investigation.
Sherwin said it's possible that treatments can be less effective for certain individuals depending on their ethnicity. “It's important in clinical trials that minority communities are represented because drugs are often approved without their engagement,” Sherwin said.
Physicians also often don't tell patients about their clinical trial options because of time constraints, Sherwin said.
