More Than 500,000 Have Cancer In The U.S. But 98% Don't Take Part In Trials

Main Category: Cancer / Oncology
Also Included In: Clinical Trials / Drug Trials
Article Date: 30 Aug 2008 - 0:00 PDT

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Americans are some of the most generous people in the world, whether it's donating time or money, each year more than 60 million of us volunteer* to help others. But that's not always the case when it comes to cancer research. In fact, you may be surprised by the number of people who don't volunteer. It's a situation that has some doctors puzzled, and might just be slowing down the efforts to find a cure.

Few people appreciate advances in the treatment of cancer like Janet Hammock. Not only did she beat thyroid cancer, but a decade later she's still volunteering to help with cancer research. Janet walks and logs her mileage everyday to help scientists determine how exercise may help prevent breast cancer, "With a little luck, and with enough people participating, we can help people down the line," says Janet.

But that's just the problem. Of all the people like Janet who benefit from cancer research. A surprisingly small number actually volunteer to help in that research by signing up for studies. "Over 500,000 people have cancer in this country, and yet only about 2 or 3% of the people go on clinical trials," says James Thomas, MD, PhD, at Ohio State University Medical Center's James Cancer Hospital.

That's something Doctor James Thomas is hoping to change. Thomas says some patients may not understand how important clinical trials are, others simply may not have access to them. Whatever the reason, the numbers are low, and it may be slowing down progress when it comes to finding cures.

"There are a lot of good ideas out there that we have to sift through. Some of them are going to work, some of them aren't going to work. But to find out, we have to put people on clinical trials, find out what things are promising and then follow up on them," says Dr. Thomas. It's a message that's not lost on Janet. She may not be at risk of breast cancer, but is volunteering to help find ways to prevent it just in case it ever threatens her children or grandchildren.

Experts say you don't have to be diagnosed with cancer to help in cancer research. Healthy volunteers can do everything from raise money to sign up for studies like Janet did, that look for ways to prevent cancer with things like a healthy diet or exercise.

*Volunteering in the United States, 2007, Bureau of Labor Statistics, retrieved from http://www.bls.gov, August 2008

Ohio State University

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