# Outreach Core

> **NIH NIH U54** · UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS BOSTON · 2024 · $189,424

## Abstract

Summary. Background: Use of existing cancer prevention strategies could have prevented over half of the
roughly 1.7 million new cases of cancer expected in the US in 2019. It is critical to intervene with adolescents
and young adults (AYAs) around key behaviors, including avoiding alcohol and tobacco use, maintaining
healthy weight, and receiving the human papillomavirus vaccine given a) their potential to shift cancer
trajectories and b) the establishment of these behaviors during AYA developmental stages. However, AYAs
are not engaging in these behaviors at desired levels. For racial and ethnic minorities and low-income
individuals, periods of adolescence (ages 10-19) and emerging adulthood (ages 20-25) are often marked by
inconsistent healthcare access and structural factors that place them at greater risk for cancer.
Goal: The Outreach Core connects implementation science, outreach, and community engagement to address
two key divides that hinder cancer prevention among underserved AYAs: (1) the research-practice divide,
which limits the impact of evidence-based interventions (EBIs) for underserved communities and (2) the cancer
workforce divide, in which the communities most impacted by cancer inequities are least represented in the
cancer research workforce. To address these divides, we will use participatory approaches to conduct the
project in collaboration with a Community Advisory Board, thus increasing the impact and relevance of
proposed solutions.
Methods: The study is organized around four aims. With Aim 1, we will build on the existing board, which
includes representatives from the Black and Brazilian communities of Greater Boston and the Latino
community of Greater Lawrence, MA (communities experiencing cancer inequities) and add AYAs and experts
in AYA health and youth-engaged research. With Aim 2, we will support community organizations to adapt and
deliver EBIs focusing on alcohol and tobacco use, maintaining healthy weight, and HPV vaccination among
underserved AYAs. With Aim 3, we will train the next generation of Black, Latino, Brazilian, and Native
scholars in the theory and practice of community-engaged research and community-centered interventions.
With Aim 4, we will co-create products and services with the Community Advisory Board to disseminate
findings and integrate community and equity considerations into Partnership activities.
Innovations and impact: We link outreach, engagement, and implementation science to develop a platform to
shape research conducted at UMB and the seven partner institutions of the DF/HCC, serving as a model
infrastructure for cancer prevention and control in partnership with populations experiencing cancer inequities.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10898685
- **Project number:** 5U54CA156734-14
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS BOSTON
- **Principal Investigator:** Sherry Tiffany Donaldson
- **Activity code:** U54 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $189,424
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2010-09-28 → 2026-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10898685

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10898685, Outreach Core (5U54CA156734-14). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-21 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10898685. Licensed CC0.

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