Cancer Center joins second clinical trial

Clinical trial targets rural cancer survivors who smoke

A second oncology clinical trial has opened at Sweetwater Regional Cancer Center. “Reaching Rural Cancer Survivors Who Smoke Using Text-Based Cessation Interventions” will study the effectiveness of a quit-smoking text-based program for rural cancer patients.

There are already a lot of options available to help people quit smoking, but not all of them will be successful, or even accessible, for each individual or demographic, said Clinical Trials Facilitator Lacey Reddick.

“This is why I am excited our Cancer Center opened this trial which is specifically designed for rural patients,” Reddick said. “Rural patients are often underrepresented in clinical trials and it is thrilling to see researchers making an effort to expand real-life representation in more studies.”

The goal of oncology clinical trials is to add to the knowledge of preventing, diagnosing, and treating cancers of all stages and types. The information gained from clinical trials can then be used to help cancer patients in the future.

“Smoking cessation is important for everyone, whether you are already diagnosed with cancer or not,” said Medical Oncologist/Hematologist Dr. Banu Symington, Cancer Center Medical Director. “The prognosis of your cancer worsens and the likelihood of additional cancers increases if you don't stop smoking.

“It is proven that a physician mentioning the importance of smoking cessation helps increase the likelihood that patients will quit,” she said. “Rural patients are regularly underrepresented in trials, yet they represent 20% of the population so being able to increase the availability of trials for rural patients is an important personal goal of mine.”

Sweetwater Regional Cancer Center opens oncology clinical trials through SWOG, which is federally funded by the National Cancer Institute, and with the support of the Huntsman Cancer Institute under an NCI NCTN affiliation. More information on this trial can be found at clinicaltrials.gov under the NCT# 05008848 or by calling the Sweetwater Regional Cancer Center at 307-212-7765.

For more on this and all Sweetwater Memorial has to offer, go to www.sweetwatermemorial.com.