Patient Expectations When Enrolling in a Phase I/II RS1 Ocular Gene Transfer Clinical Trial

The objective of this study is to understand the factors that influence patient expectations when enrolling in an early-phase RS1 ocular gene transfer clinical trial and to assess the psychological impact of patient expectations over time.

Study Population: Up to 50 adults with X-linked retinoschisis who are eligible to be screened for a Phase I/II ocular gene transfer clinical trial will be included in this study. We hope to capture the experience of those actively engaged in the decision-making process who may choose not to participate in the clinical trial or who may receive gene transfer.

Design: This is a prospective qualitative interview study with quantitative questionnaires. Participation will involve up to three interviews with questionnaires over one year. Interviews may take place in person at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center (NIH CC) or by telephone and will focus on how the interviewee came to the decision to participate (not to participate) in the early-phase ocular gene transfer trial. Interviews will be transcribed verbatim, coded by two independent coders, and analyzed thematically. Participants will also be asked to complete a questionnaire that measures dispositional optimism, resilience, and general mood states using instruments that have been shown to be valid and reliable in both the general population and in clinical samples. Information collected from these surveys will supplement information collected during the qualitative interview and will provide information about constructs that are difficult to assess during a brief interview.

Outcome Measures: The primary outcomes of this study include a description of what research participants expect when choosing to enroll in an early-phase clinical trial and a description of the psychological impact, over time, of having high expectations