Background: Racial and ethnic inequities exist in cancer clinical trial participation. Low recruitment across ethnically diverse communities contributes to health inequalities further disproportionately affecting these groups. Understanding barriers and enablers to clinical trial participation for ethnic minorities is key to developing strategies to address this problem.

Objective: To explore, evaluate, and synthesize qualitative research surrounding patients' lived experiences and perceptions of participating in cancer clinical trials from ethnically diverse groups.

Methods: Noblit and Hare's 7-stage metaethnography was used. Seven databases were searched. Inclusion criteria were as follows: qualitative studies published in English from January 1, 2012, to January 31, 2022; patients from any ethnic minority 18 years and older with a cancer diagnosis; and cancer patients' carers and healthcare professionals (HCPs)/healthcare leaders involved in the delivery of cancer clinical trials.

Results: The majority of included articles were conducted in the United States. Interpretive qualitative synthesis resulted in 7 categories including patient perceptions and beliefs and HCP perception of trial burden and social determinants of health. Four lines of argument were established.

Conclusions: The findings capture the experience and perceptions of ethnic minority patients, their carers, HCPs, and healthcare leaders in this area of research. Incongruities exist between patient-reported barriers and those perceived by HCPs. Published empirical research outside the United States is limited.

Implications for practice: When developing strategies to increase clinical trial participation, research literacy, cultural safety, and unconscious biases within healthcare need to be addressed. Further research to examine intersectionality and the role of faith in decision-making among ethnic groups is warranted.

Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.