CANCER DISPARITIES NEWS DIGEST(03.10.08)
CRCHD Announcements
Tracy Daniels wins UCLA 2008 Chancellor's Award for Postdoctoral Research
Postdoctoral Fellow and CURE Supplement Recipient, Tracy Daniels wins the
prestigious Chancellor's award for her research entitled Anti-TfR IgG3-Av: A New
Drug Against Multiple Myeloma.
NCI Director Tours PNRP Grantee Project in Boston
CRCHD's Patient Navigation Research Program (PNRP) grantee, Dr. Karen Freund,
recently met with and provided Dr. John Niederhuber, NCI director, with an
overview of their PNRP project on a visit he made to Boston University earlier
this month.
Cells to Society: Overcoming Health Disparities Symposium
Speakers from the Centers for Population Health and Health Disparities recently described their transdisciplinary, multilevel research into the interactions of biological, social, cultural, environmental, and behavioral factors, relating to health disparities.
CRCHD Participates in American Cancer Society's (ACS) Planning Meeting
CRCHD is working in collaboration with ACS to plan the 3rd annual National
Patient Navigator Training Symposium to be held in Fall 2008.
Cancer Health Disparities (CHD) Summit 2008
CHD Summit 2008 will highlight basic science, clinical research, and
population-based interventions. Look for more information on our CRCHD website later this month.
"Economic Costs of Cancer Health Disparities: Summary of Meeting Proceedings" Now Available in PDF
Proceedings and recommendations are now available from this historic
CRCHD-supported meeting to examine costs related to cancer health disparities.
http://crchd.cancer.gov/attachments/NCIeconomiccosts.pdf
Cancer News from NCI, NIH, and other Federal Agencies
From NCI
The Nation's Investment in Cancer Research Connecting the Cancer Community: An Annual Plan and Budget Proposal for FY2009
NCI's budget proposal offers insight into NCI's scientific planning and
priorities for the upcoming year.
http://plan.cancer.gov/
The Early Detection Research Network (EDRN): Investing in Translational Research on Biomarkers of Early Cancer and Cancer Risk
The EDRN focuses on creating biomarkers for clinical testing and application
to improve cancer outcomes.
http://www.compass.fhcrc.org/edrnnci/files/pdf/edrn_4th-report_200801.pdf
Health Disparities Across the Cancer Continuum: A Supplement Sponsored by the National Cancer Institute
Special issue of the Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved
features the research of participants in two NCI-sponsored training
activities held in 2006.
http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/journal_of_health_care_for_the_poor_and_underserved/toc/hpu18.4A.html
NCI Debuts New Easy to Read Radiation Therapy Educational Resources
Designed in easy-to-read and understand formats, these resources provide
straightforward information to help patients understand how radiation therapy
works and how to best manage its side effects. Available in English and
Spanish.
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/wtk/index
From NIH
Enzyme Structure Reveals New Drug Targets for Cancer and Other Diseases
National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) funded scientists show
how a key protein controls gene activity and how mutations in the protein
may cause disease, paving the way for personalized medicine.
http://www.nih.gov/news/health/feb2008/nigms-14a.htm
Other Federal Agencies
National Business Group on Health and HHS Office of Minority Health Launch Initiative to Reduce Racial and Ethnic Disparities
New two year effort will focus on building business and community coalitions
to improve quality of care and reduce disparities.
http://www.omhrc.gov/npa/templates/content.aspx?ID=62&lvl=1&lvlID=13
United States Cancer Statistics: 2004 Incidence and Mortality
Web based report provides federal statistics on cancer incidence from
registries that have high-quality data and cancer mortality statistics for each
year and 2002-2004 combined.
http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/npcr/npcrpdfs/US_Cancer_Statistics_2004_Incidence_and_Mortality.pdf
F.D.A. Extends Avastin's Use to Breast Cancer
The Food and Drug Administration approved wide spread usage of Genentech's
best selling drug, Avastin, which had previously been approved for treatment of
colorectal cancer.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/23/business/23drug.html>
Cancer News From the Field
NCI Grantee Spotlights
Dr. Lovell A. Jones Featured on ABC News
Dr. Lovell A. Jones, Professor of Health Disparities Research and Director of
the Center for Health Disparities Research at University of Texas M.D. Anderson
Cancer Center discuses health disparities in medical care on ABC News.
http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=4353874
Enhancing Practice
Cancer Drugs Require More Complex Tailoring
Cancerous genetic variations may vary by patient suggesting the need for
drugs to be finely tailored in order to be effective.
See Full Article
http://www.pnas.org/cgi/reprint/0712399105v1
See Related Article
Study: More Complexity in Tailoring Cancer Drugs
Researchers Find Biological Factors that May Drive Prostate Tumor Aggressiveness in African-American Men
Researchers report differences in gene expression between African-American
and European-American men, suggesting that biological variations may
contribute to the current disparity in prostate cancer survival rates.
http://cancerres.aacrjournals.org/cgi/co
Smoking's Effects on Genes May Play a Role in Lung Cancer Development and Survival
Researchers show that smoking affects the way genes are expressed leading to
alterations in lung cell division and regulation of immune response.
http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0001651
The Effect of Patient Navigation on Time to Diagnosis, Anxiety, and Satisfaction in Urban Minority Women with Abnormal Mammograms
Randomized Control Trial shows that patient navigation is an effective
intervention in reducing time to diagnosis, decreasing anxiety, and improving
satisfaction among urban minority women.
http://www.springerlink.com/content/16u877j728414512/fulltext.pdf
Stress Linked to Cervical Cancer
Preliminary findings suggest that stress could be one factor impairing the
body from fighting off the human papillomavirus.
See Full Article
http://www.springerlink.com/content/k80628822w119782/fulltext.pdf
See Related Article
- Feeling Stressed Out
Linked to Cervical Cancer
Commonly Cited Website Quality Criteria Are Not Effective at Identifying Inaccurate Online Information About Breast Cancer
Study finds that about five percent of web-based information on breast cancer is inaccurate and most of the inaccuracies are in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM).
http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/fulltext/117908535/PDFSTART
Select Cancer Disparities News Stories
American Cancer Society: Annual Cancer Facts and Figures 2008
According to the ACS Cancer Facts and Figures 2008, cancer mortality rates are still declining but actual cancer-related deaths have increased.
See Full Article
http://www.cancer.org/docroot/NWS/content/NWS_1_1x_Cancer_Facts_and_Figures_2008_Released.asp
See Related Articles
- Once-Sharp Decline in Cancer Rates Easing
- Cancer Deaths Up in 2005; Rate Still Falling
- Cancer
Death Rates Still Declining
More Advanced Cancer Seen in Uninsured Americans
Uninsured and Medicaid patients are more likely to be diagnosed with advanced cancers possibly due to low screening rates.
http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUS
Funding, Training, and Employment Opportunities
Disparities-Related Funding Opportunities
Community Participation in Research (R01 and R21)
This FOA will use R01 and R21 grant mechanisms to encourage CBPR studies
specifically target medically underserved areas as well as underserved and
underrepresented populations.
Feasibility Studies for Collaborative Interaction for Minority Institution/Cancer Center Partnership (P20)
This P20 supports planning and implementation of focused collaborations in cancer-related research, training, career development, education, and/or outreach.
Centers of Excellence in Cancer Communication Research II (CECCR II) (P50)
The CECCR Program promotes interdisciplinary research in the area of cancer communication with the purpose of contributing directly to positive health outcomes and quality of life for individuals.
Community Participation in Research (R01)
This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) seeks intervention research in quasi-experimental research projects that seek to influence preventive behaviors, treatment adherences, complementary behaviors, and related attitudes and beliefs.
Training and Employment Opportunities
Molecular and/or Cellular Biology, Johns Hopkins University
For more information contact: Chair, Search Committee, Department of Biology,
Krieger School of Arts and Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, 3400 N. Charles
Street, Baltimore, MD 21218.
Center for Epigenetics, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine
The Center seeks new faculty working in fields broadly related to
epigenetics, including biochemical and structural studies of chromatin and DNA
modifications, the epigenetics of humans and model organisms, and novel
computational and systems biology approaches.
http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/ibbs/research/epigenetics/
Population Science & Cancer Control, Nevada Cancer Institute
Epidemiologist sought to conduct analysis of existing data and design new
research projects using Nevada and national cancer registry data.
http://www.nevadacancerinstitute.org/
Population Science & Cancer Control, Nevada Cancer Institute
Behavioral Scientist needed to design and conduct new research projects
emphasizing interventions among Nevada's population, using Nevada and national
cancer registry data and other relevant data bases.
http://www.nevadacancerinstitute.org/
Office of Communications and Education, National Cancer Institute
Public Affairs Specialist to serve as a communications liaison within the
Communications Planning and Coordination Branch (CPCB). Two positions open until
March 19, 2008.
http://jobsearch.usajobs.gov/jobsearch.asp?q=HHS%2FNIH-2008-1332
Upcoming Meetings and Events
ICC 11th Biennial Symposium on Minorities, the Medically Underserved & Cancer
April 3-6, 2008
Omni Shoreham Hotel
Washington, DC
http://iccnetwork.org/symposium
Xavier University of Louisiana 2nd Annual Health Disparities Conference
April 10-12, 2008
Westin Canal Place
New Orleans, LA
http://xula08.the1joshuagroup.com/index.html
AACR Annual Meeting
April 12-16, 2008
San Diego Convention Center
San Diego, CA
http://www.aacr.org/meetingcalendar
National Academies of the Sciences 2nd Annual Conference on Understanding Interventions That Encourage Minorities to Pursue Research Careers
May 2-4, 2008
Hilton Hotel
Atlanta, GA
http://www.understandinginterventions.org/
H. Lee Moffitt Cancer, Culture & Literacy: 6th Biennial Conference
May 15-17, 2008
Sheraton Sand Key Resort
Clearwater Beach, FL
http://www.moffitt.org/Site.aspx?spid=D48CFB1754CF4A1CB906D298663E3FE4
AACR Accelerating Anticancer Agent Development and Validation Workshop
June 18-20, 2008
Bethesda North Marriott Hotel & Conference
Center
Rockville, MD
http://www.acceleratingworkshop.org/
CRCHD Cancer Health Disparities Summit 2008
July 14-16, 2008
Bethesda North Marriott Hotel & Conference
Center
Rockville, MD
AACR Centennial Conference, Translational Cancer Medicine 2008: Cancer Clinical Trials and Personalized Medicine
July 20-23, 2008
Hyatt Regency Monterey
Monterey, California
http://www.aacr.org/home/scientists/meetings--workshops/translational-cancer-medicine-2008.aspx
Lance Armstrong Foundation: National Meeting on Survivorship
July 24-27, 2008
Ohio State University
Columbus, Ohio
National Latino Cancer Summit
July 30-August 1, 2008
UCSF-Conference Center at Mission Bay
San
Francisco, CA
https://register03.exgenex.com/gcmmaintenance/lcc/html_files/hotel.html
AACR Methods in Clinical Cancer Research Workshop
August 2-8, 2008
Vail Marriott Mountain Resort
Vail,
CO
Application Deadline: March 17, 2008
http://www.vailworkshop.org/
APHA Annual Meeting: Public Health Without Borders
October 15-29, 2008
San Diego Convention Center
San Diego, CA
http://www.apha.org/meetings/highlights/