| Sumario: | Background: Rural patients are significantly underrepresented in cancer clinical trials. A proper understanding of the barriers and facilitators to rural patient participation in cancer clinical trials is essential, especially in states like Texas where rural-urban disparity is prominent. Methods: EBSCO Medline, Embase, CINAHL, Cochrane, and PsycInfo were systematically searched for articles. A total of 2663 articles were screened, yielding 20 articles for study. Results: A systematic review of the literature revealed that barriers and facilitators to cancer clinical trial participation by rural populations are present at the patient, physician, and healthcare system levels. Notable barriers found in this review include the burden of travel, lack of patient knowledge about clinical trial participation, insufficient provider communication and awareness of current trials, and strict eligibility criteria. Promising facilitators include caregiver support, close physician support and contact, and programs to increase patient understanding of clinical trials. Conclusion: Further elucidating barriers to ascertain why rural patients have less participation in clinical trials, and exploring which facilitators need to be further explored, could allow for effectively harnessing the power of facilitators in the pursuit of lessening disparities and improving cancer outcomes for rural patients.
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