Services

CCETR facilitates linkages and collaborations with health systems, community organizations and leadership in diverse communities that are under-represented, under-served, or at higher risk for cancer incidence, morbidity and mortality.

• Finding community contacts appropriate for partnerships to address investigators’ research questions
• Coordinating meetings for investigator-community partnerships
• Assisting with identifying roles and responsibilities within investigator-community partnerships

Examples of community partners include:

• Diverse provider organizations, including national, regional, and local minority physician organizations (e.g., National Medical Association, Vietnamese American Medical Association)
• Health and social service organizations that reach specific communities and audiences (e.g., Organization of Hispanic Professionals, Chinese Professional Club, The Women’s Fund, Boat People SOS)
  
• Federal Qualified Community Health Centers and Federal Look-Alike Community Health Centers
• City and county public health clinics
  

CCETR assists with a range of activities to support investigators, including:

Grant development

• Identify preliminary/pilot data for grant applications
  
• Guidance in developing inclusive research, research questions and drafting of specific aims and study design
  
• Advise on recruitment and retention strategies and setting attainable accrual goals that reflect patient and population demographics and that supports the integrity, safety, and scientific rigor of clinical trials
  
• Review study protocols, study instruments and consent form for appropriateness for study population

Grant writing

• Provide and summarize epidemiologic data to support research proposals and research design, including
  • Historical registration and accrual data (by department, diagnosis, and patient demographics)
  • (cancer incidence, prevalence, cancer statistics for various patient demographic variables)
• Assist with response to reviewer comments, including the development of clinical trial recruitment plans to ensure participants reflect the population of people affected by the condition under study
• Assist with recruitment and retention of demographically under-represented groups to MD Anderson research protocol

Grant submission

• Review intramural or extramural grants prior to submission related to community-engaged research
  
• Advice on grant budgets and justification related to community research collaboration costs
• Develop grant subcontracts with community partner

Research implementation

• Refine recruitment materials for appeal and relevancy for specific audiences, including people with low-health literacy
• Assist with creating and managing Community Advisory Committees
• Assist with community-based staff training
• Assist with evaluation planning

Results dissemination

• Assist with developing research dissemination plans (e.g., identifying goals, objectives, audience, content)
• Assist with community dissemination (e.g., lay media, websites)
• Collaborate on academic manuscripts

Minority and Women Recruitment Program services are offered through CCETR. Researchers are provided advice on recruitment strategies for participants as well as on the barriers and mechanics of minority recruitment. Specifically, services include:

Data provision

• Historical registration and accrual data (by department, diagnosis, race/ethnicity, gender, etc.)
• Epidemiological data to support research proposals and research design (cancer incidence, prevalence, cancer statistics by race/ethnicity, gender, geographic region/area, etc.)

Grant writing assistance

• Assist with response to reviewer comments, including the development of clinical trial recruitment plans for minorities and women.
• Refine recruitment materials for appeal and relevancy to minorities, women and populations with low-health literacy and/or limited English proficiency.
• Assist with recruitment and retention of minorities and women to MD Anderson research protocols.

Through the Research Navigation Program to Enhance Diversity, CCETR is working alongside multiple MD Anderson clinics to assist MD Anderson patients with either participating in a clinical trial or staying on a clinical trial.

As a part of the program, our research navigators provide patients with personalized support and guidance to assist with reducing participation barriers and increasing access to clinical trials by:

1. Offering clinical trials education
2. Connecting patients to MD Anderson services and community resources (i.e., housing, transportation, and financial assistance)
3. Being a contact for general questions about MD Anderson support services

If you have any questions or would like more information, please feel free to email us or call 832-750-7020.

We are currently providing services in:

1. Thoracic, Head and Neck Medical Oncology
2. Lymphoma & Myeloma
3. Investigational Cancer Therapeutics
4. Genitourinary Oncology
5. In the planning and implementation phase(s) for providing services at Lyndon B. Johnson Hospital (LBJ)

Through a collaborative grant with UTHealth and MD Anderson, CCETR supports the Center for Clinical and Translational Sciences’ (CCTS) Community Engagement (CE) component. Through the below programs, the CCTS bridges the research-to-practice gap in local communities throughout Texas, including Northeast Texas, Houston and the Rio Grande Valley. Through the CCTS, CCETR continues to offer community engagement opportunities for project implementation and dissemination.

CCTS CE Programs

• Community Health Initiated Research Partnership (CHIRP)
• Solutions in Action Workshop
• Translational Science Expert Panel

Other services are available upon request. These include:

• Training/lectures on cancer disparities, community-engaged research, population demographics, health literacy, and clinical trial navigation
• Technical support, consultation, and cultural competency training/resources
• Assistance with finding CER research funding