The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) has partnered with Bristol Myers Squibb on an initiative to expand access to cancer trials.
The Cancer Collective Action Collaborative is a three-year project that will bring together 24 teams across the healthcare ecosystem to address clinical trial participation barriers among populations disproportionately affected by cancer, according to the Oct. 22 announcement.
Cancer outcomes remain unequal across the U.S., with higher mortality rates in breast and lung cancer amongst black women and men, respectively, the IHI noted in its release. Living in a rural area has also been linked to higher cancer incidence and mortality, due to limited access to oncologists, fewer screening services and longer travel distances for treatment.
IHI—a non-profit dedicated to improving health and healthcare systems worldwide—recently released a four-step approach to help healthcare teams across settings identify health disparities.
“Removing barriers to clinical trials is both an imperative and an opportunity within our reach,” Shannon Stephens, IHI’s interim vice president of health equity, said in the release. “By valuing the lived expertise of patients alongside the clinical expertise of providers and taking a coordinated, collaborative approach, we can advance more equitable care and create sustainable change across the cancer care ecosystem.”
The Cancer Collective Action Collaborative, which is being launched in partnership with BMS, will focus primarily on increasing participation in breast and lung cancer trials. The companies hope to improve how health systems connect eligible patients to trial opportunities, strengthen patient and community engagement and trust, equip care teams and community partners, and build reliable and inclusive pathways for trial enrollment.
“At BMS, we believe that every person should have the opportunity to benefit from our medicines and innovation, no matter who they are, where they live, or what they have,” Andrew Whitehead, vice president and head of population health at BMS, said in the release.