# Community Outreach and Engagement

> **NIH NIH P30** · UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH · 2022 · $180,002

## Abstract

Abstract: Community Outreach and Engagement
UPMC Hillman Cancer Center (HCC) works throughout western Pennsylvania to assess the cancer burden
and address, through community engagement and high-quality research, the cancer incidence and mortality in
its catchment area (CA). The HCC CA consists of 25 rural and 4 urban counties located in Appalachia, with the
majority of minority populations residing within the urban counties. The counties collectively are largely low
income with higher than U.S. rates for age-adjusted cancer incidence (breast, prostate, colorectal, lung,
thyroid) and mortality (lung, breast, and prostate), with racial disparity in Allegheny County for lung, breast, and
colo-rectal cancer mortality. CA risk behaviors include lower than national rates of cancer screening, poor
uptake of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine and high rates of obesity and tobacco usage. Under the
leadership of Drs. Robertson (Community Engagement and Outreach) and Rosenzweig (Catchment Area
Research), the HCC’s Committee for Health Equity and Community Outreach & Engagement (CHECOE) uses
several data sources and strategies to define cancer incidence, mortality, screening behaviors, burdens, and
risks. Using these data, CHECOE, in close collaboration with the HCC research programs and the Community
Advisory Board and partners, directs the development and implementation of HCC CA initiatives and
evaluation of these efforts toward cancer burden reduction. These initiatives include a research portfolio with
contributions from each HCC program directed at identified CA burdens, and provision of evidence-based
community engagement to meet identified education, screening and support needs of CA populations. These
efforts include the successful navigation of patients from underserved areas to cancer screening and, if
necessary, through treatment. There is statewide collaboration for the increased uptake of HPV vaccine.
HCC’s program of CA research includes several initiatives focused on developing new agents directed at
specific CA high incidence and mortality malignancies; tobacco cessation; and better understanding and
mitigation of racial disparity in cancer treatment. Research also includes the long-standing Pittsburgh Lung
Screening Study (PLuSS), now used for developing risk biomarkers; identification of regionally unique cancer
threats and resilience; and several initiatives to ensure equitable cancer care, including novel delivery systems
in rural areas and improving minority recruitment to clinical trials. Future plans include the development of
infrastructure to better describe diverse populations in the community and across the cancer trajectory, an
ongoing CA health equity regional meeting, development of CA academic rigor, and focused initiatives to
increase recruitment of diverse populations into clinical trials.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10474537
- **Project number:** 5P30CA047904-34
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH
- **Principal Investigator:** Linda Barry Robertson
- **Activity code:** P30 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $180,002
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 1997-09-10 → 2025-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10474537

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10474537, Community Outreach and Engagement (5P30CA047904-34). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10474537. Licensed CC0.

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