# Research Project 1

> **NIH NIH U54** · UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM · 2023 · $414,014

## Abstract

ABSTRACT- PROJECT 1. Disparities in cancer prevention and outcomes by poverty status are rooted in
structural and intermediate social determinants of health (SDH), including neighborhood built and social
environments. Features of the built environment (e.g., walkability, safety, healthcare facilities) and the social
environment (e.g., collective efficacy) have major implications for cancer risk through behaviors such as
physical activity and access to preventive care. Adverse neighborhood conditions also exacerbate the stress
response, in the form of high allostatic load, which is a risk factor for many cancers. This is a problem in
persistent poverty (PP) areas where adverse neighborhood conditions are highly prevalent. However, despite
compelling evidence that the living (built and social) environment impacts health-related behaviors and
outcomes, including cancer, there are virtually no interventions that determine to what extent modifications of
the neighborhood built and social environments reduce cancer risk. The proposed study aims to fill this
knowledge gap. We propose a 5-year research project to implement Cancer Prevention through Enhanced
EnvironMent (Cancer PREEMpT), to test whether a comprehensive community intervention that improves the
neighborhood built and social environments can reduce cancer risk in PP areas. The specific aims of Cancer
PREEMpT include: 1) Implementing Cancer PREEMpT and assessing whether the enhancement of living (built
and social) environments leads to increased public safety, use of parks and community spaces, community
events, and prevention services; 2) Determining the effect of improved living environments on community-level
perceptions and behaviors related to cancer risk, such as walkability and safety, self-reported physical activity,
social cohesion and collective efficacy, and use of preventive care and cancer screening; and 3) Evaluating the
impact of improved living environments on self-reported and objective chronic stress (including allostatic load}
and healthcare utilization (including cancer screening). Using a multisectoral approach to bring together
citizens, organizations, businesses, and local governments to improve their living environment, the theorybased
Cancer PREEMpT intervention will engage community members in five adjacent, urban PP census
tracts in Bessemer, Alabama. After a community-engaged needs assessment, modifications will be made in
the built and social environments, followed by an evaluation in Year 5. We will apply sequential explanatory
mixed methods assessments using a two-group design with independent samples of 300 residents at pre(
Year 1) and post-intervention (Year 5), and focus groups with residents. Finally, to ascertain impact on health
care utilization, we will compare Electronic Health Records of all residents of the target area receiving care
through the UAB Health System with residents of control urban PP communities similar in racial make-up.
Cancer PREEMpT ...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10660383
- **Project number:** 1U54CA280770-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM
- **Principal Investigator:** Lori Brand Bateman
- **Activity code:** U54 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2023
- **Award amount:** $414,014
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2023-06-15 → 2028-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10660383

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10660383, Research Project 1 (1U54CA280770-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-27 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10660383. Licensed CC0.

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