Clinical Research Roundtable Series

PDF is holding a series of three roundtables (the first two were held in January 2007 and February 2008) to examine and address barriers to clinical research participation - some of which were first identified through the PDtrials initiative. 

The roundtables are day-long meetings, developed in partnership with advocates who are living with Parkinson's and including all stakeholders in the clinical research process-researchers, sponsors and members of government.

PDF believes that these first-ever collaborative gatherings will be educational and insightful; set the stage for increased understanding, dialog and partnership throughout the PD community; and most importantly, aid in addressing key barriers to clinical trial participation in a way that will ultimately advance treatments and therapies and bring us that much closer to a cure for Parkinson's disease.

The Roundtable Series aims to address barriers to clinical trial participation, such as:

• A lack of trust within the PD patient community about clinical trials
• The expression of a need for more inclusion among patient leaders in the clinical research enterprise
• The desire among trial participants for informed consent to be viewed as a process as opposed to a static signed document
• The lack of participation in clinical trials among minorities
• The low level of physician/patient communication about clinical trials (according to a 2005 Harris Interactive® survey, 11 percent of Parkinson's patients report that their physician has suggested that they participate in a clinical trial and the majority of physicians who treat people with Parkinson's refer 10 percent or less of their patients for clinical trials)
• The lack of participation in clinical research by community physicians

Thought leaders from all of the stakeholder groups committed to the acceleration of Parkinson's therapies - researchers, sponsors, government and people living with Parkinson's - will be invited to participate in each roundtable. Each roundtable will result in a briefing paper and an action plan.

2007 and 2008 Roundtables and Reports: 

• "Building Patient Trust: A New Era in Parkinson's Clinical Research Rights & Responsibilities" (2007)
  • Read the Roundtable Report on "Building  Patient Trust
  • See Marshall Loeb's article, "Raising Trust in Parkinson's Clinical Trials", which appeared in our Spring 2007 newsletter
• "Building Collaboration and Communication: Engaging Community Physicians in Parkinson's Clinical Research" (2008)
  • See David Eger's "Engaging Community Physicians in Parkinson's Clinical Research", which appeared in our Spring 2008 newsletter.

PDF thanks the Vernalis bio-pharmaceutical company as the primary underwriter of these roundtables and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries for their support.