When institutions consider strategies to respond to the urgent need to increase diversity among clinical trial participants, they might mostly be thinking of the race, ethnicity and gender of potential study enrollees. But they may forget another group of people who should be engaged in research: the elderly.

Sue Peschin doesn’t want that to happen. Peschin, president and CEO of the Alliance for Aging Research, recently spoke about this topic with Jenny Luray, vice president of strategy and communications for Research!America,^[1] on the occasion of Peschin’s organization winning Research!America’s Paul G. Rogers Distinguished Organization Advocacy Award.^[2]

During her remarks, Peschin pointed out that many of the processes—such as remote monitoring and telehealth visits—that institutions have adopted as a result of the pandemic work well for the elderly and should be maintained once COVID-19 is no longer a threat.

The message from the government is clear: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and NIH have sought to encourage the inclusion of older individuals in research. For example, in 2020, FDA issued draft guidance on expanding enrollment in cancer trials.^[3]