Clinical trial eligibility determination using an oncology electronic medical record system interfaced to a caBIG-certified trial database
6626 Background: One reason for the low numbers of patients entered on cancer clinical trials is the difficulty and inconvenience encountered in determining whether patients are eligible. The introduction of electronic medical record (EMR) systems in cancer facilities provides a means by which clinical parameters may be electronically collected and compared against clinical trial eligibility criteria, with the potential to facilitate eligibility determination. We hereby describe a widely utilized EMR system interfaced to a caBIG-certified searchable clinical trials database which facilitates eligibility determination. Materials and Methods: MOSAIQ is a widely utilized oncology- specific EMR system that is operational in radiation and medical oncology facilities world-wide. During the routine course of patient care, clinical trial eligibility parameters such as diagnosis, stage, age, and performance status are entered into defined data fields within the EMR. Trialcheck is an independently maintained caBIG bronze level certified database that lists thousands of clinical trials from Cooperative Groups, NCI/PDQ, the pharmaceutical industry and trials being conducted exclusively at particular oncology facilities. TrialCheck registrants can screen trials for patient eligibility as well as filter and track the status of trials that have been activated at their facility. In addition, a real-time, secure Internet interface between MOSAIQ and TrialCheck extracts eligibility parameters from a patient record, sends that information to TrialCheck, and returns a listing of matched clinical trials. Results: In a test screen of 4 MOSAIQ EMR patients against 257 TrialCheck clinical trials, the system matched a patient with Stage IV breast cancer to 7 available trials in less 2 seconds, a patient with Stage IIIB colon cancer to 3 trials in 5 seconds, a Stage IV prostate cancer to 5 trials in 4.4 seconds, and a patient with stage II esophageal cancer to 2 trials in 3.7 seconds. Conclusion: This product demonstrates a novel and innovative solution to one of the problems inherent in the clinical trial registration process in an efficient, reliable and secure manner. No significant financial relationships to disclose.