Engine failures: A critical analysis of current clinical trial (CT) websites' search engines
Standing
Undergraduate
Type of Proposal
Oral Research Presentation
Challenges Theme
Open Challenge
Faculty Sponsor
Dr. Caroline Hamm
Proposal
BackgroundClinical trials are critical to treatment advancement as they provide a foundation for future progression. The existing clinical trial search system is composed of websites through which one can find recruiting clinical trials that a patient may be eligible for. Currently, only 7% of cancer patients in Ontario are enrolled in a clinical trial, emphasizing the need for optimization and critical analysis of the current search system for delivery of a suitable list of clinical trials for patients.MethodsThree individuals were hired to conduct searches for cancer patients across five search engines. They each conducted searches on ClinicalTrials.Gov. In addition, navigator 1 searched CanadianCancerTrials.com, navigator 2 searched ClinicalTrialsOntario, and navigator 3 searched 3CTN and Q-CROC. For every search, each tracked search key words, total trials shown, total eligible trials found, and the number of eligible trials found on alternate websites that were not present in the initial ClinicalTrials.Gov search. Also, qualitative analysis was done to identify shortcomings in the search engines. All searches were amalgamated by the lead navigator.ResultsOur findings reveal pitfalls in the clinical trial search system, such as inadequate or dysfunctional search filters, inconsistent results across the different clinical trial websites, low reproducibility of search results, outdated trial information, and lack of user-friendly navigation. Final results will be available at the time of the conference.ConclusionThe highlighted challenges of the current search system indicate an inefficient process that may be compromising clinical trial recruitment and thus potential patient outcomes.
Grand Challenges
Viable, Healthy and Safe Communities
Engine failures: A critical analysis of current clinical trial (CT) websites' search engines
BackgroundClinical trials are critical to treatment advancement as they provide a foundation for future progression. The existing clinical trial search system is composed of websites through which one can find recruiting clinical trials that a patient may be eligible for. Currently, only 7% of cancer patients in Ontario are enrolled in a clinical trial, emphasizing the need for optimization and critical analysis of the current search system for delivery of a suitable list of clinical trials for patients.MethodsThree individuals were hired to conduct searches for cancer patients across five search engines. They each conducted searches on ClinicalTrials.Gov. In addition, navigator 1 searched CanadianCancerTrials.com, navigator 2 searched ClinicalTrialsOntario, and navigator 3 searched 3CTN and Q-CROC. For every search, each tracked search key words, total trials shown, total eligible trials found, and the number of eligible trials found on alternate websites that were not present in the initial ClinicalTrials.Gov search. Also, qualitative analysis was done to identify shortcomings in the search engines. All searches were amalgamated by the lead navigator.ResultsOur findings reveal pitfalls in the clinical trial search system, such as inadequate or dysfunctional search filters, inconsistent results across the different clinical trial websites, low reproducibility of search results, outdated trial information, and lack of user-friendly navigation. Final results will be available at the time of the conference.ConclusionThe highlighted challenges of the current search system indicate an inefficient process that may be compromising clinical trial recruitment and thus potential patient outcomes.