When I started on the team, I was responsible for creating a thesaurus for each type of cancer which would then help us add the information to the intake surveys on RedCap. In the summer of 2022, I volunteered at the Cancer Centre to help create building intake surveys on RedCap which would be used eventually to collect patient information to curate a list of clinical trials for a patient.
In addition to working on RedCap in the summer of 2022, I was a Clinical Trial Navigator where I searched for clinical trials for patients on ClinicalTrials.Gov, Ontario Clinical Trials, QCROC, and CanadianCancerTrials. When searching for clinical trials along with other navigators, we analyzed our search results from each database to determine discrepancies and barriers when accessing clinical trials.
However, more recently, I have been working on a scoping review regarding connecting patients with clinical trials using patient navigation to learn the extent of literature in regard to this topic. This project has entailed working with librarians to formulate a search strategy, title and abstract screening, full-text screening, and currently data extraction. I have registered the protocol on Open Science Framework (OSF), submitted the protocol to BMJ Open, and showcased my current progress at the London Health Research Day 2024.
Working with the CTN Team has been the most rewarding experience since I have had the opportunity to gain skills from other members of the team, learn more about barriers surrounding accessing clinical trials, help find effective ways for cancer patients to access clinical trials, and further research facilitators such as patient navigation to aid connecting patients to clinical trials. I look forward to continue working with this amazing team to continue making an impact on patient’s lives.