Clinical trial recruitment: Asthma + Lung UK’s proposed solution
Clinical trials are an essential part of medical research, looking at new ways to prevent, detect or treat disease.
But recruitment into trials is struggling, with the number of patients accessing industry research falling by 44% between 2017 and 2021 (ABPI 2022). This is a serious threat to the long-term future of clinical research in the UK – and the benefits it brings to patients, the NHS and the economy.
Asthma + Lung UK are keen to solve this problem, particularly regarding respiratory clinical trials. We have set out an effective way that our reach and engagement can drive clinical trial recruitment, for which we would welcome funding and support.
The respiratory opportunity
Clinical trials’ struggle to recruit is in part driven by professionals’ reduced capacity to undertake research post-pandemic and by slow and cumbersome processes. For people living with lung conditions, these barriers are exacerbated by breathlessness – making it difficult to travel to trials – and a lack of motivation due to the belief that nothing can be done to help them.
Using respiratory as a pilot to improve clinical trial recruitment presents huge opportunities. Respiratory disease is the 3rd leading cause of death in the UK and there are little to no treatments for the majority of lung conditions. The respiratory drug delivery market is expected to reach $87,745 million by 2029 (Data Bridge Market Research Market Analysis Study 2022) and, with the advent of virtual wards, remote spirometry and wearable respiratory monitors, respiratory is prime for new trial designs.
Asthma + Lung UK: a trusted source
This is where Asthma + Lung UK can come in. We are well-placed to make it more efficient and effective to recruit people with lung diseases into clinical trials, including those in primary care, those in harder-to-reach groups and those who don’t interact with the NHS. We are better placed to understand our beneficiaries and gain understanding of their motivations to join trials, such as wanting some hope for their own diagnosis, to help others, or to do something proactive about their condition.
Simply putting trial enrolment opportunities in front of the general public, who generally don’t recognise the value of research, is not enough. We propose that, with a review of the consumer decision-making process and interventions by Asthma + Lung UK at appropriate points, there is a possibility to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of recruiting into clinical trials (Professional Academy, Marketing Theories – Explaining the Consumer Decision Making Process). At a very base level we are proposing the following framework: Agitate, Educate, Affiliate.
Taking our supporters on a journey
We would take those affected by lung conditions on a journey towards taking action and volunteering for a clinical trial. This journey consists of 3 simple steps:
· Step 1: Agitate – we must pique our audience’s interest and attract them to the opportunity.
· Step 2: Educate – we will educate our audience, so they understand what the opportunity is and why it would be beneficial to them.
· Step 3: Affiliate – we will provide a simple way to take action so they can experience the opportunity and gain the benefit.
Making the most of Asthma + Lung UK’s reach and trust
The key to delivering this effectively is about reach, how efficiently you can get to your target audience, and trust, how quickly you can build trust in order to agitate and educate the audience of the opportunity. This is where the power of our brand and reputation counts.
We already have strong reach with our community through referrals from clinicians, support groups and calls to our Helpline, through which we can disseminate clinical trials messaging. We also already have a high level of trust among those affected by lung conditions. While trust in certain sources has fallen since the pandemic, trust in charities remains higher than most other parts of society (Charity Commission 2022).
What next?
We are very keen to explore collaborative approaches to solve these challenges. We are interested in supporting trials with a programme of audience ‘agitation’, ‘education’ and ‘affiliation’ and hosting a recruitment platform to feed into existing trial infrastructure. Most importantly, we are interested in working with others and supporting ideas already in motion.
If you’re interested in discussing this with us, please contact Dr Samantha Walker at swalker@asthmaandlung.org.uk.
