Description

d. Overall study design

This will be a pilot randomized controlled trial where the investigators will plan on randomizing patients with PDAC in a 1:1 fashion to receive a digitally-enhanced community health worker intervention that will involve visits with the CHW and digital communication to facilitate care navigation and provide early palliative care engagement or usual care.

e. Study Procedures and Schedule

Recruitment of subjects for the study

To recruit patients for the interviews, the investigators will screen all of the patients who present for endoscopic ultrasound (with biopsy) to the endoscopy unit or pre-procedure clinic at Loma Linda, as well as patients referred to the medical or surgical oncology clinics with a new diagnosis of pancreatic adenocarcinoma. The investigators will recruit patients from our gastroenterology clinic and endoscopic unit and the oncology clinic (the researcher's patients) both in person and over the phone via a telephone call. The investigators will not contact patients outside our clinical practice but will distribute an IRB-approved flyer with our number to oncology clinics that patients can call and leave a voicemail or email us at our secure HIPPA-complaint Loma Linda email address assigned to our study (cancerresearch@llu.edu). The investigators will also distribute an IRB-approved letter to other oncologists informing them of the study so they can distribute the flyer to their patients and inform patients who may be candidates for this study. The reason the investigators are including patients with suspected PDAC is to eliminate delays once they receive a diagnosis as patients previously reported a flurry of medical visits in the 2 weeks after diagnosis. However, patients will need to undergo a biopsy and have pathology confirmation before study initiation. Patients found to have other pathology on biopsy than pancreatic adenocarcinoma will be excluded. The investigators will explain the study inperson or over the phone when they are referred for a pancreatic biopsy or for oncologic care for a new diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. The investigators will explain that the investigators are recruiting them because they have pancreatic cancer and want to study if a community health worker can help patients like themselves navigate care and engage with palliative care better than the current care that patients receive. If they are interested, they will then be consented using written informed consent at their clinic visit in the clinic or prior to their in-person study visit.

When a patient is diagnosed with PDAC, they receive the diagnosis over the phone and follow-up in clinic. They are referred to medical and surgical oncology and to palliative care for supportive care..