# Mentored Clinical Research to Improve Outcomes for Pediatric Mature B Cell Lymphoma in Uganda

> **NIH NIH U54** · BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE · 2022 · $125,000

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
This application is being submitted in response to the Notice of Special Interest (NOSI) identified as NOT-CA-
22-036. Outcomes for children with cancer in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) are unacceptably poor, with fewer than
20% of those diagnosed surviving. By contrast, over 85% of children with cancer in the US survive. The HIV
epidemic complicates the landscape of pediatric malignancies in SSA. In partnership with collaborators in SSA,
Global HOPE aims to lay the foundation for an international collaborative clinical trial network: Pediatric HIV/AIDS
& Infection-Related Malignancies Research Consortium for Sub-Saharan Africa (PARCA). The central problem
faced in SSA is the significant burden of HIV-associated malignancies in children and the poor survival of these
patients. Global HOPE, a program developed by Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) and Texas Children’s
Hospital (TCH), addresses systemic challenges to improve patient outcomes by facilitating the development of
a network of pediatric cancer care and research centers across SSA, starting with sites in Uganda, Malawi,
Botswana, and Tanzania. Global HOPE focuses on capacity-building and has partnered with the internationally
recognized Makerere University College of Health Sciences (MakCHS) in Uganda to create a first-of-its-kind
collaborative pediatric hematology-oncology (PHO) training hub. In 2016, Makerere College of Health Sciences
(MakCHS) and Global HOPE implemented the first accredited PHO physician postgraduate clinical fellowship
training program in SSA. To date, 24 pediatricians from eight African countries have enrolled in this two-year
PHO fellowship training Program. Fourteen graduates from the program are currently leading PHO care teams
at 7 centers in 4 countries in SSA. In this application, we propose to take advantage of PARCA to support clinical
research training of Dr. Anne Akullo, a recent Ugandan graduate of the MakCHS PHO fellowship program, with
a mentorship team including Dr. Ruth Namazzi (Lecturer, MakCHS, and Director of the Pediatric Hematology-
Oncology Fellowship Program at Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda) and clinical research experts from
Houston and Uganda. The overall goal of the parent U54 is to establish a standardized multi-site strategy to
deliver safe and effective disease-specific and risk-stratified care to children with mature B cell non-Hodgkin
lymphoma (MB-NHL) in SSA. Dr. Akullo’s training will include personalized curriculum and mentored research
experience focusing on clinical research goals of Project #3 of the PARCA U54 in Uganda: To investigate clinical
and biological characteristics associated with clinical outcomes of children with MB-NHL treated on standardized
PARCA treatment regimens.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10621584
- **Project number:** 3U54CA254569-03S1
- **Recipient organization:** BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE
- **Principal Investigator:** CARL E ALLEN
- **Activity code:** U54 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $125,000
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2020-07-25 → 2025-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10621584

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10621584, Mentored Clinical Research to Improve Outcomes for Pediatric Mature B Cell Lymphoma in Uganda (3U54CA254569-03S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10621584. Licensed CC0.

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