Integrating Cancer and Aging at Pitt

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DESCRIPTION: (Applicant's Description) The goal of this proposal, titled "Integrating Cancer and Aging at Pitt", is to establish a standing Cancer and Aging Program within the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute. The core mission of the Cancer and Aging Program will be to develop and test interventions to improve health outcomes in older persons with cancer. In order to develop the Cancer and Aging Program, over the next five years, we will 1) implement a series of activities designed to reduce barriers and promote collaboration, 2) perform pilot translational research studies to better understand the immunobiology of cancer in elderly patients and apply insights to develop more effective treatment, 3) collect, develop, evaluate and disseminate aging-relevant measures of co-morbidity, functioning and cancer outcomes, and 4) develop and test promising medical, behavioral and social interventions for older people with cancer. We will build on institutional strengths to expand collaborative research in three main areas identified in the Aging and Cancer Workshop Report; 1) translational research on immunobiology of cancer and aging, 2) clinical trials of treatment efficacy and tolerance in the context of age related co-morbidity and 3) behavioral and social issues in older cancer patients. Since cancer care planning should depend not on chronological age, but on life expectancy, ability to tolerate treatment, and patient goals, we envision developing a spectrum of care strategies tailored to the individual health and functional status of the cancer patient aged 65 and over. In order to further identify barriers to collaborative research on aging and cancer, and to design strategies to overcome them, we plan a first year series of interactions with critical constituencies from academics and clinical practice at Pitt, with clinicians from the region, and with older cancer survivors and caregivers in the community. We see successful collaboration as dependent on our ability to accommodate and incorporate each potential contributor's perspective, experience and priorities. In order to sustain a feedback loop between our constituencies and our Program, we propose standing academic, clinical and community advisory groups. This proposal includes plans for: 1) a series of workshops and retreats designed to engage representatives from all of the relevant disciplines and constituencies, identify possible barriers to the success of the Program and implement strategies to overcome them, 2) seminars and conferences designed to promote innovative and collaborative research in cancer and aging, 3) a pilot research program to support initial projects considered to be of high scientific quality and of central relevance to the goals of the Program, 4) development of a new Measurement in Aging and Cancer Resource Core, 5) the inclusion of aging issues into relevant existing programs and shared resource facilities of the UPCI and 6) inclusion of cancer issues into major programs of the University of Pittsburgh Institute on Aging (UPIA).