(2/2) TUFCCC/HC Regional Comprehensive Cancer Health Disparity Partnership

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PROJECT SUMMARY Overall TUFCCC: Grace X. Ma, PhD (Contact PI) and Jean-Pierre Issa, MD (MPI) HC: Olorunseun O. Ogunwobi, MD, PhD (Contact PI) and Joel Erblich, PhD, MPH (MPI) Despite advances in early detection and treatment of cancer, significant racial/ethnic disparities exist in African, Asian-Pacific, and Hispanic Americans, bearing disproportionate cancer burden. These cancer health disparities are particularly salient in the Pennsylvania-New Jersey-New York City (PNN) region, where there is a high concentration of minority populations compared to elsewhere in the U.S. Moreover, despite numerous academic institutions conducting biomedical research in PNN region, there is a critical dearth of underrepresented minorities (URMs) involved in cancer research, who bring unique scientific and cultural strengths necessary to conquer cancer health disparities. Building on collaborative history, successful and synergistic planning activities/accomplishments between TUFCCC and HC, and NCI-funded cancer disparities research networks (CNPC), we propose to establish TUFCCC/HC Regional Comprehensive Cancer Health Disparities Partnership to reduce cancer health disparities in PNN region. The goals of this Partnership are to: a) develop a strong and sustainable collaborative cancer health equity research infrastructure, b) support the development of outstanding URM students and ESIs who are committed to careers in cancer research, and c) collaboratively engage the community in enhancing quality and feasibility of these efforts. These goals will be achieved through the following specific aims: Aim 1. Create and enhance sustainable cancer disparity research collaborations in URM populations between TUFCCC and HC. Aim 1a. Enhance institutional cancer research capacity at HC in basic, behavioral and clinical cancer research and provide HC researchers with access to cancer core facilities, resources and expertise at TUFCCC. Aim 1b. Increase the number of research projects at TUFCCC that focus on cancer health disparities in underserved populations throughout the PNN region. Aim 2. Provide research education opportunities in cancer disparities to support a pipeline of diverse and URM undergraduate and graduate students at HC and TUFCCC. Aim 3. Establish a sustainable career development program to increase the number and diversity of investigators/ESIs to conduct cancer and cancer disparity research at both HC and TUFCCC. Aim 4. Use a Community-Based Participatory Research approach to engage researchers, students and community leaders to develop and implement culturally appropriate collaborative cancer outreach, research and education initiatives to increase access to, and utilization of cancer prevention, early detection and treatment in underserved disparity populations. To achieve U54 goals/aims, the Partnership includes two innovative and rigorous full research projects, a pilot project and a series of integrated cores, including Research Education, Planning and Evaluation, Community Outreach, and Biostatistics/Bioinformatics. Administrative Core will provide oversight and cohesion to the Partnership. Finally, the Partnership has a high level of institutional commitments from both TUFCCC and HC and is well positioned to make significant contributions to advancing cancer health equity in PNN region and beyond.