# Community Outreach and Engagement

> **NIH NIH P30** · H. LEE MOFFITT CANCER CTR & RES INST · 2022 · $162,194

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
COMMUNITY OUTREACH & ENGAGEMENT
Moffitt Cancer Center (Moffitt) serves West Central Florida, a 15-county region of 6.1 million residents. Moffitt
covers a large, mainly urban, geographic area with a population mirroring the U.S. in race/ethnicity, foreign-born
status, and Spanish language preference. Recognizing the need to formalize, harmonize, and expand the scope
of our longstanding commitment to serve the community, Moffitt established the Office of Community Outreach,
Engagement & Equity (COEE) in 2018 under the leadership of Associate Center Director (ACD) of COEE, Susan
Vadaparampil, PhD, MPH, MHSE. Moffitt patient and community-focused advisory boards (CABs), in
combination with catchment area geography, sociodemographic characteristics, and vulnerable populations, are
foundational to COEE’s organizational and engagement structure. Community-defined needs include cancer
prevention and screening, access to care, clinical trials education, and a focus on populations experiencing
cancer-related health disparities. Further, compared to Florida and the United States, there is a higher incidence
of lung, melanoma of the skin, ovarian, oropharynx, and cervix cancers in the catchment area, as well as poor
uptake of health behaviors that reduce risk of these cancers (e.g., HPV vaccination). COEE rigorously evaluated
the intersection of community needs, cancer burden, and related risk factors. In collaboration with the CABs,
catchment area priorities were developed to reduce the burden of cancers that are tobacco-related, caused
by ultraviolet exposure, amenable to screening modalities for genetic risk or early detection, preventable by
vaccine, and/or that have excess mortality in vulnerable populations. Collectively, COEE activities that address
these priorities are organized into three Specific Aims:
Aim 1: To assess, prioritize, and monitor catchment area needs across the cancer continuum.
Aim 2: To catalyze innovative research and clinical trials responsive to catchment area priorities.
Aim 3: To accelerate the adoption of evidence-based practices through outreach, partnerships, and policy to
address catchment area priorities.
COEE efforts have led to highly impactful catchment area-relevant science in all five research Programs. For
example, COEE created two community-engaged pilot grant mechanisms that funded eight studies between
2018-2020. COEE also supported the opening of Moffitt’s first clinical trial for Persons Living with HIV, a
vulnerable population in our catchment area. Importantly, from 2016-2020, Moffitt provided over 8,000 free
cancer screenings and cancer education to over 56,000 community members. Finally, a key example of our
policy efforts is work that led to the coverage of cutting-edge CAR T-cell therapy by Medicare. In summary,
COEE has rapidly become an integral part of the community and Moffitt’s culture through a community
engagement structure that is built upon mutual trust and respect. Going forward,...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10333166
- **Project number:** 2P30CA076292-24
- **Recipient organization:** H. LEE MOFFITT CANCER CTR & RES INST
- **Principal Investigator:** SUSAN T VADAPARAMPIL
- **Activity code:** P30 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $162,194
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** 1998-02-18 → 2027-01-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10333166

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10333166, Community Outreach and Engagement (2P30CA076292-24). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10333166. Licensed CC0.

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