Cancer Research Education Program

The North Carolina Central University (NCCU) ? Duke Cancer Disparities Translational Research Partnership (NCCU-DUKE CDTRP) is focused on developing infrastructure for research and training in translational cancer research on molecular pathways contributing to the increased lethality of specific cancers in African Americans. The Program is built on long- standing relationships between these two Durham-based Institutions, less than four miles apart. NCCU is a minority-serving historically black university (HBCU), affiliated with the 17-member University of North Carolina system, and the Duke Cancer Institute (DCI) is an NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center. The partnership will specifically focus on research and training areas described by the NIH Translational Research Working Group including genomics, epigenomics, proteomics and other emerging technologies around biomarkers, identification of novel preventative and therapeutic targets, and with the NCCU faculty bringing a unique focus from an HBCU on the development of new drugs and innovative drug formulation and delivery mechanism. The partnership will also include research and training around biospecimen collection and development of primary human cancer models for elucidation of biological and genetic factors associated with cancer health disparities, as well as clinical research operations and minority accrual to clinical and specimen collection trials. The partnership will develop around accelerated planning and priority-setting stages, particularly focused on development of a fully integrated, bi-directional, mutually beneficial Cancer Research Education Program (CREP) that rigorously addresses career development across doctoral graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and early stage investigators. Multimodal training will be implemented and will include extensive laboratory research, mentoring, grant writing resources, cancer forums and colloquia, and exposure to clinical research operations and accrual. The objectives of this program are to 1. Provide comprehensive research training opportunities for minority PhD students and postdoctoral fellows in translational and pre-clinical/clinical cancer disparities research; 2. Adequately prepare minority scientists to enter into a diverse workforce for better matriculation into careers in translational cancer research and; 3. Provide trainees with a better understanding of translational/clinical research operations, processes, and patient accrual, with emphasis on minority accrual and patient navigation and community outreach. An extensive evaluation plan has been devised and metrics will be collected to provide crucial feedback to further develop more sustainable comprehensive efforts that significantly impact cancer disparities.