Impact of biomedical research on African Americans

Abstract

Pharmaceutical development and medical research continues at a fevered pitch. Historically, however, African Americans and other minorities have not been adequately represented in the studies determining a drug's safety and efficacy in humans. A history of misuse in the medical research systems (most notably the Tuskeegee study of syphillis in a population of illiterate, poor black men) have left many blacks wary of the health care system. However, attempts to address the health disparities faced by African Americans must include processes for including wider representation of blacks--as patients as well as investigators--in clinical trials.