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ACCC Community Oncology Research Institute

Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States. It affects people from across the country regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, age, and location. Yet, cancer clinical trials have failed to adequately represent the diversity of this patient population.

To help address this disparity, the ACCC Community Oncology Research Institute (ACORI) was launched in 2021. ACORI’s mission is to establish clinical trials as a standard of care in treatment plans and to help achieve equitable cancer care delivery for all patients.

ACORI Research Review Newsletter: June 2024

This June, we recognize National Cancer Survivorship Month by highlighting research efforts aimed at enhancing quality of life for the estimated 18.1 million cancer survivors across the US. The winners of the 2024 ACCC Clinical Research Award and the David King Community Clinical Specialist Award are revealed, as well as their meaningful contributions to the practice of oncology in the community setting. The novel N-Power Medicine technology platform is featured in this month’s issue, which has been designed to integrate clinical trial enrollment into routine patient care. Built with the community oncology clinic in mind, this point-of-care technological solution streamlines patient enrollment into clinical trials while simultaneously alleviating administrative burden for clinical staff. Both clinic and patient barriers to clinical trial enrollment in the rural setting are discussed. Potential solutions to these barriers are explored, with links to resources tailored to community oncology practices serving rural populations. Lastly, the Tigerlily Clinical Trial Finder Tool is reviewed, which empowers patients with breast cancer to identify potential clinical trials for which they may be eligible.
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Clinical Research Terms Glossary

To help standardize understanding of baseline knowledge across cancer care teams, we’ve created this digital glossary of clinical research terms. We hope it will serve as a tool to improve patient education and encourage shared decision-making conversations.

Access the Glossary

Podcasts

[PODCAST] Ep 84: Increasing Clinical Trial Access for Blood Cancers Jun 7, 2022

Clinical trials are the best instrument to advance treatment for blood cancers, but numerous challenges exist around trial identification, enrollment, and participation. We’ll hear perspectives from a community provider and patient advocacy organization on immediate—and forward-thinking—solutions to help this population better access clinical trials, including a tool from the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society to help patients identify cancer clinical trials that may be a fit.
[MINI-PODCAST] Ep 38: Improving Community Clinical Trial Participation Oct 13, 2020

Learn about the importance of reaching diverse populations with clinical trials where they live and how one clinical trial has prioritized community engagement.

ASCO-ACCC Initiative

On July 25, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and the Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC) jointly released resources to help research sites increase the racial and ethnic equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) in cancer clinical trials.

The Just ASK™ Training Program and Site Self-Assessment are available free-of-charge and represent a full and complementary set of resources that can help research sites address barriers to participation in cancer clinical trials among racial and ethnic populations that have been historically underrepresented.

These resources follow the May 2022 publication of the ASCO-ACCC Research Statement "Increasing Racial and Ethnic Diversity in Cancer Clinical Trials," which outlines specific actions for individual stakeholders in the cancer clinical trial ecosystem to increase diversity in research participation.

ACORI Call to Action Summit

Held September 13-14, 2021, in collaboration with Stand Up to Cancer, the ACORI Call to Action Summit: Activating Equity in Community Oncology Research has identified concrete strategies for engaging patients, caregivers, and their communities to strengthen oncology research. More than 120 people from 60 organizations generated 200+ ideas for action items to make cancer care research more diverse, equitable, and accessible.

Read Executive Summary Watch On-Demand Replay

ACORI's Three Primary Domains

EQUITY

We advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion with trial sponsors and regulatory agencies. ACORI will develop education and resources that promote strategies and solutions to achieve health equity, as we investigate persistent areas of disparities in cancer clinical trial participation.

CAPACITY BUILDING

ACORI utilizes ACCC know-how to build capacity and competency among community research programs to make them research-ready by democratizing knowledge, skills, and infrastructure for clinical research. We will also facilitate mentorship opportunities between established and developing research programs and convene community oncology stakeholders for peer-to-peer learning and networking.

RESEARCH DIFFUSION

ACORI is a primary resource for academic and industry sponsors that fosters relationships with trial sponsors and other research groups. The Institute vets research and trial opportunities and disseminates pertinent opportunities to interested community oncology research programs.

Through ACCC’s robust network of partnerships, ACORI will enable community oncology programs and their multidisciplinary teams to access the tools, knowledge sharing, effective practices, and peer mentorships to increase their ability to offer trials to patients.

About ACORI

In 2021, the ACCC Community Oncology Research Institute (ACORI) was established after ACCC's year-long examination of equity in and access to clinical trials in local communities under the direction of Past President Randall A. Oyer, MD. Through ACORI, ACCC is working to establish clinical trials as a standard of care for all patients, regardless of where they are treated by helping community oncology programs access the tools, knowledge sharing, effective practices, and peer mentorships that can increase their ability to offer clinical trials.

“Connecting community cancer centers through partnerships will help overcome persistent barriers that exist to conducting research in the community. By sharing resources, we can help make any community oncology program research-ready,” Dr. Oyer said.

For more information on this project, please contact the ACCC Provider Education department.

News & Media

Randall-Oyer-HealthWell-Foundation-interview-240x137 Cancer Research Belongs in the Community
HealthWell Foundation, June 15, 2022

Randall-Oyer-AJMC-screenshot-240x137 Dr Randall A. Oyer: Clinical Trials Must Be Accessible to Everyone
AJMC, June 1, 2022

ACCC Community Oncology Research Institute Releases Groundbreaking Call To Action to Strengthen and Diversify Cancer Research
News Release, Jan 25, 2022

A critical component of reducing cancer mortality lies in achieving equity in care
STAT, Oct 19, 2021

Cancer Center Spotlight: The ACCC Community Oncology Research Institute
Oncology Learning Network, August 18, 2021

Association Of Community Cancer Centers Launches Institute To Diversify Cancer Clinical Trials
OncLive, June 4, 2021

Association of Community Cancer Centers Launches Institute to Diversify Cancer Clinical Trials
News Release, June 2, 2021

Abstracts & Presentations

[Abstract e13506] Characterization of Cancer Clinical Trials in the Community Setting
Published by Journal of Clinical Oncology, May 29, 2024. Presented at 2024 ASCO Annual Meeting, May 31-June 4, 2024

The characteristics of 1,310 clinical trials conducted across 64 community oncology practices were reviewed to discern what factors may contribute to a trial being well-suited for the community setting. Additionally, the characteristics of trials run at community cancer centers were compared to factors that may favor an academic setting.
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Barriers to Clinical Trial Implementation Among Community Cancer Centers
Published on JAMA Network Open, April 29, 2024

In this national survey, it was revealed that while most cancer centers offered therapeutic trials, significant disparities exist for trial availability across different care settings. The study observed that smaller practices had fewer industry-sponsored trials, and rural and suburban practices had fewer early-phase trials. These findings highlight the need for targeted strategies to overcome these barriers.
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[Abstract #999] Clinical Trial Matchmaking: Connecting Sites to Sponsors
Presented at AACR Annual Meeting, April 10-15, 2024.

Oncology programs encounter many challenges when engaging in clinical trials. The Association of Cancer Care Centers’ (ACCC) Community Oncology Research Institute (ACORI) conducted a survey to gather insights about barriers to clinical trial implementation, patient recruitment, and identifying resources to support community cancer programs.
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Training Program

Just ASK™: Increasing Diversity in Cancer Clinical Research

An online implicit bias training program that presents the broader context of structural and systemic racism, the role of implicit bias in clinical trial selection, vignettes with real-world examples of implicit bias, and guidance for mitigating disparities in cancer research settings.

Facilitation Guide

To facilitate fruitful discussions with staff around implicit bias, this Just Ask™ Training Facilitation Guide has been developed to identify feasible action steps to support implementation of a Just Ask™ strategy in your research site or cancer program or practice.

Download Guide

From Oncology Issues

Welcome to ACORI
Barbara A. Gabriel

Under ACORI, ACCC helps community oncology programs access the tools, knowledge sharing, effective practices, and peer mentorships that can increase their ability to offer clinical trials.
Highlights from the ACORI Call to Action Summit

The summit brought together a diverse group of stakeholders to explore practical ways to strengthen and diversify oncology clinical trials.