300 Section - Barriers and facilitators to clinical trial involvement for patients with spasticity

Wednesday, May 20, 2026

6:00 PM - 7:30 PM PT

Corresponding Author/Autor a quien dirigir la corr(s)

WC

Wendy Clarke, MS

Medical Director UK & Ireland
Merz Therapeutics UK & Ireland
Hemel Hempstead, England, United Kingdom

Co-Author/Coautor(s)

TB

Trishna Bharadia, BA(hons), MFPM(Hon)

Patient Author
Spark Global UK
London, England, United Kingdom

Presenting Author/Autor expositor(s)

ME

Malaz Elhussein, MSc

Medical Director UK & Ireland
Merz Theraputics
Hemel Hempstead, England, United Kingdom

Objectives : Spasticity and its associated etiology can negatively impact a person’s ability to perform everyday activities, potentially also affecting independence, mental health, and quality of life. Both functional and logistical factors may therefore affect recruitment and retention of patients in spasticity-related clinical trials. Patient/caregiver advisory boards were held to understand challenges faced by patients with spasticity when taking part in clinical trials.

Design: Two online advisory boards were held (February 2025) involving participants affected by spasticity (one for participants with post-stroke spasticity, one for participants impacted by multiple sclerosis [MS]). Meetings were led by a company medical director and scientific advisor, and a patient advocate experienced in patient engagement. Prior to the meetings, participants had 1:1 interviews with the company representatives and patient advocate to gain in-depth understanding of their disease experience and contextualize their advisory board contributions. During the advisory boards, participants were asked about their experience with clinical trials and features that may encourage/discourage them from participation.

Results:

Stroke participants were young stroke survivors (n=5) who experienced a stroke when aged 15–48 years (durations since first stroke ~5–19 years). MS participants were patients (n=5) and caregivers (n=2); patients were aged 26–50 years at MS diagnosis (time since diagnosis 9–25 years). Several themes were identified based on factors affecting patients’ decisions to enter trials, including: 1) Logistics – logistical aspects alongside disease-related factors may limit ability and willingness to travel/attend regular visits; 2) Communication and support; 3) Concerns about adverse events and effects on comorbidities; 4) Concerns about not being accepted on the trial. Suggestions to improve accessibility were also provided.

Conclusion: Everyday logistics and disease-specific and cultural factors may influence patient recruitment and retention in clinical trials. Communication and support is needed to minimize inconvenience, limit fatigue, and ensure involvement of diverse populations.