Regional Center of Research Excellence in Cancer and Other Non-Communicable Disease Epidemiology and Prevention in Vietnam

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Rapid economic growth, industrialization, and widespread adoption of a western lifestyle in Vietnam have been accompanied by an emerging epidemic of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). NCD research in Vietnam, however, is very limited and mainly restricted to NCD prevalence assessment and risk factor surveillance. Currently, there is no population-based epidemiological research program for cancer, diabetes, or other NCDs in Vietnam due to the lack of a population-based cancer registry, a dearth of well-trained investigators, and the absence of proper research support infrastructure. To address these challenges, we plan to establish a multi- institutional US-Vietnam-China partnership to plan and build a Regional Center of Research Excellence (RCRE) for NCD research in Vietnam. Our long-term goal is to establish a self-sustaining, high-impact NCD research and training center in Vietnam and to establish a large population-based cohort study for NCD research there. In this application, we propose to establish a formal partnership to be led by the Vanderbilt Epidemiology Center (VEC) and the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, institutes with outstanding records of excellence in NCD research and capacity-building in LMICs, particularly in Asia, and the Vietnam National Institute for Cancer Control, the national leader in cancer care and control. Our regional partner, the Shanghai Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention (SCDC), will provide expertise in building NCD research and control programs that are most relevant to Vietnam. Our other partners in Vietnam, Hanoi Medical University and Hanoi School of Public Health, are leaders in Vietnam in NCD prevention research. Dr. Luu from the University of South Florida will bring to the RCRE his years of experience in coordinating health- related activities in Vietnam. We will conduct a consultative meeting to assess needs, capacity, and to set priorities that incorporate input from major medical universities, cancer registries, and government and non- governmental key stakeholders for NCD research. We will provide research capacity enhancement training via multiple site visits, an in-country workshop, a national NCD research conference, and scholarships to two Vietnamese investigators for more in-depth training at the SCDC and VEC. We will conduct a case-control study for breast cancer and a community survey for type 2 diabetes, two NCDs of particular public health concern in Vietnam, and collect biospecimens that will lay a foundation for future multi-disciplinary research. Through these activities, we will establish the Survey Research Support Core, the Biospecimen Processing and Biorepository Core, and the Bioinformatics and Informatics Core, the infrastructure essential to NCD epidemiology research, and develop an array of study instruments and protocols for future NCD studies in Vietnam. We will also develop plans to establish a longer-term research and training program for Vietnam that is also highly relevant for its neighboring LMIC countries. The long-standing collaborations among these partners and the strong institutional supports and commitments ensure success in implementing this RCRE.