Patient Autonomy & Decision-Making: Cancer Clinical Trial Participation

This event is hosted by the Joint Centre for Bioethics at the University of Toronto. 

Early phase cancer clinical trials (CTs) require special attention to informed consent procedures in order to ensure participants' understanding of the risks and benefits, and evolving safety and efficacy data.

This talk will discuss a qualitative study which explores the factors that influence patients' decisions about participating in early-phase CTs through an ethics lens. Findings highlight the paradoxical nature of achieving informed consent in a circumstance described by patients as life versus death. Intertwined in the decision-making process was interpersonal dynamics and structural influences that contributed to feelings of hope and desperation. This knowledge can inform the development of tools and resources to assist patients in making informed decisions about CT participation that supports their important relationships and autonomy.

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