# Enriching Communication Skills for Health Professionals in Oncofertility (ECHO)

> **NIH NIH R25** · H. LEE MOFFITT CANCER CTR & RES INST · 2020 · $218,027

## Abstract

ECHO Project Abstract/Summary
The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) published updated clinical practice guidelines extending
the responsibility for discussion of infertility and referral for fertility preservation beyond the medical oncologist,
to explicitly include other physician specialties and Allied Healthcare Professionals (AHPs) in the oncology care
setting. However, it is critical to consider that reproductive health for AYA cancer patients extends beyond
infertility and fertility preservation to include several other related interrelated components of physical and
social functioning. AHPs may be particularly well suited to the role of discussing reproductive health with AYA
given some aspects of their training (e.g., psychosocial counseling, coordination of services, health education)
facilitate these discussions with patients. Importantly, AHPs need a general understanding of the potential
impact of cancer diagnosis and/or treatment on AYA patients' reproductive health including physical
functioning (reproductive capacity, fertility preservation options, contraception needs) and social functioning
(body image, sexuality, friendships and romantic partnering). They must also have the skills to communicate
about these issues and identify and facilitate referrals for additional services. Yet, few proven, evidenced
based training approaches have demonstrated improvements in AHPs' knowledge, skills, and behaviors
specific to reproductive health for AYA patients. This team's prior work in the Educating Nurses about
Reproductive Issues in Cancer Health (ENRICH) program for oncology nurses is an effective curriculum that
has short and intermediate term impacts on knowledge, perceived confidence, and behaviors. However, the
focus of content and training to date has been primarily on infertility and fertility preservation. The proposed
renewal application seeks to expand and extend the original ENRICH program. The currently proposed
Enriching Communication skills for Health professionals in Oncofertility (ECHO) Program aims are to: (1) train
360 AHP (nurses, social workers, psychologists, and physician assistants) over a 5 year period (2) refine and
implement the ECHO program to facilitate knowledge about and skills to address reproductive health needs of
AYA oncology patients via a web based learning community; (3) evaluate the impact of the program at the
participant (e.g., knowledge, practice behavior) and workplace level (e.g., policies, referral systems); and (4)
develop a network of trained AHPs to share experiences, resources, and dissemination of the program and
content.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10006776
- **Project number:** 5R25CA142519-10
- **Recipient organization:** H. LEE MOFFITT CANCER CTR & RES INST
- **Principal Investigator:** Gwendolyn P Quinn
- **Activity code:** R25 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $218,027
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2011-08-02 → 2022-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10006776

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10006776, Enriching Communication Skills for Health Professionals in Oncofertility (ECHO) (5R25CA142519-10). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10006776. Licensed CC0.

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