Turn on cookies to sign in
Signing in saves your progress to your Curie account. We can only do that with cookies on — turn them on to continue.
Black and Hispanic patients with parkinsonism can participate in research at rates comparable to White patients — when researchers actually make it easier for them. A new study found that using a real-time clinical registry, flexible protocols, bilingual staff, and transportation support leveled the playing field. The findings, published in the Journal of Parkinson's Disease, challenge the assumption that minority underrepresentation in trials is inevitable.
Black and Hispanic patients have long been underrepresented in Parkinson's disease research, but a new study suggests that gap isn't inevitable — it's fixable. Researchers at the James J. Peters VA Medical Center used a real-time Standard of Care Registry to identify eligible patients before clinic visits, then layered in targeted supports like bilingual staff, transportation assistance, flexible study protocols, and telehealth options. The result? Recruitment and acceptance rates for Black and Hispanic patients were statistically similar to those of White patients across multiple studies.
The approach was tested across three research initiatives — CANPARK, Vet-PD, and a brain bank donor registry — covering 192 eligible patients seen between December 2022 and June 2024. Even patients with significant cognitive impairment or those in long-term care were offered participation where feasible.
By the Numbers:
Why it matters: These findings offer a replicable blueprint for diversifying clinical trial enrollment in neurodegenerative disease research — an area where representative data is critical for developing treatments that work across all populations.
