Program Objectives and Future Plans

Program Planning and Strategic Development: The recruitment of a new Associate Director for Cancer Prevention and Control remains a top priority, with an on-going national search in progress. Similarly, a nationwide search will soon be launched by the AMC Cancer Prevention and Control Program to recruit one new faculty member in cancer survivorship research. Additional areas targeted for future recruitment include tobacco control, cancer epidemiology and health services research. Opportunities to leverage these future recruitments with the new University of Colorado School of Public Health will also be given high priority, reflecting on-going efforts to further integrate the Prevention & Control Program into the School of Public Health.

As noted above, 10 new members have recently been added to the AMC Cancer Prevention and Control Program from the previous Carcinogenesis and Chemoprevention Program. In the next few months, a series of seminars and planning meetings will be scheduled to explore new opportunities for intraprogrammatic collaborations with these new members. These seminars and planning meetings will remain a high priority for Dr. Marcus and the new Co-Program Leader, Dr. Rajesh Agarwal.

While the Prevention and Control Program will continue in its efforts to expand and extend its current portfolio of cancer prevention and control research, cancer survivorship has emerged as a high priority theme for new research and program initiatives. For example, AMC’s Cancer Information and Counseling Line (CICL) has provided cancer information and brief psychosocial counseling to cancer patients, cancer survivors and their families for over 25 years via its 1-800 telephone number. Efforts are now underway to further integrate the CICL into routine psychosocial support services at UCCC, including increasing the number of on-site referrals to the CICL, and implementing an innovative callback program to proactively provide psychosocial support services to UCCC patients and survivors. Another program initiative (both service and research) that is being conducted by the LIVESTRONG Center of Excellence involves efforts to coordinate and standardize the provision of cancer treatment summaries and longer-term care plans to cancer patients receiving treatment at UCCC.

In addition to the above, several current pilot studies (Support by Telephone for Caregivers in Hospices, Dr. Kilbourn, PI) and needs assessment surveys (Cancer Survivorship in Latinos, Dr. Byers, PI; QOL for Leukemia/Lymphoma Survivors, Dr. Parry, PI) should also provide new opportunities for R01-type intervention studies in cancer survivorship. Also noteworthy is the recently funded intervention trial described above (Dr. Kevin Oeffinger, PI, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center) that will target screening mammography among young adult women who were treated with chest radiation as pediatric oncology patients. Another proposal (currently in review at the NCI) will target the QOL of mothers of pediatric oncology patients (Dr. Debra Friedman, PI, Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center). These two projects reflect a new strategic plan to promote collaborations with investigators in pediatric oncology, both at UCCC and nationwide, where psychosocial and behavioral counseling interventions will be delivered by CICL counselors.

Another emerging programmatic initiative involves cancer patient navigation programs. As noted previously, Dr. Raich is conducting a randomized trial of a cancer patient navigation program at Denver Health Medical Center (DHMC) that is targeting breast, colorectal and prostate cancer patients. When completed, this efficacy trial has significant potential for renewal as a dissemination study, both at DHMC and beyond. Concurrent with Dr. Raich’s study, Dr. Risendal and colleagues have implemented a training program in patient navigation in collaboration with ACS and other community partners.

Tobacco control will likewise continue to be emphasized. For example, Dr. Levinson (as described above) was recently awarded a R21 grant involving a smoking cessation navigator to assist low income smokers who want to quit. It is anticipated that this pilot study will likewise evolve into a more ambitious program of R01-funded research.

Promoting additional intervention research in the areas of diet, nutrition and physical activity will continue to remain a high priority area for research. Future plans to extend this line of research include promoting additional intraprogrammatic research with Dr. James Hill and his Center for Human Nutrition, which will be expanding its focus and capacity when the Center moves to the Anschutz Medical Campus.

The Program will also continue to emphasize programs of research to reduce cancer-related disparities in the Rocky Mountain Region and beyond. As a case in point, Cancer Prevention and Control investigators (as noted above) are collaborating with the Center for African American Health (Black Church Initiative on Cancer, National Center for Minority Health and Health Disparities) to pilot test a diet, nutrition and physical activity intervention among African Americans in Northeast Denver. Similarly, the Colorado Front Range Community Network Project (Dr. Paula Espinoza, PI) has three NCI-funded pilot studies involving young investigators that target Latinos in cancer patient navigation, tobacco control and HPV vaccine promotion. All of these pilot studies have significant potential for evolving into R01-type intervention studies in cancer prevention and control. Additionally, the competitive renewal of the CNP will likewise remain a high priority for the Cancer Prevention and Control Program.

Also noteworthy is that UCCC is actively engaged in preparing two proposals involving Specialized Programs of Research Excellence (SPORE) in melanoma cancer and breast cancer, with the former involving an inter-institutional collaboration with the University of New Mexico. Both of these proposals will involve significant collaboration with members from the AMC Cancer Prevention and Control Program, with each proposal including a dedicated research project in cancer prevention and control.

Finally, it should be noted that the Program leadership will continue to monitor funding opportunities from the NCI, ACS, CDC and elsewhere to encourage and facilitate a competitive response to these opportunities. High priority areas for future research include cancer survivorship and patient navigation, cancer screening (especially colorectal cancer), and tobacco control.