# Improving Adherence to Breast Cancer Treatment Guidelines in Nigeria > **NIH NIH K08** · ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI · 2024 · $198,811 ## Abstract PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT Background: Breast cancer is the most common cause of cancer incidence and mortality in women in Nigeria. Survival is poor, in part due to inadequate access to effective treatment. The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) Harmonized Guidelines for sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) were developed to promote delivery of evidence-based, context-appropriate breast cancer care. Dr. Romanoff’s prior work shows that receiving multi- disciplinary, guideline-concordant breast cancer care in Nigeria is associated with improved outcomes. Nonetheless, guideline implementation and adherence are sporadic and have not been systematically evaluated. The overall goal of this K08 proposal is to facilitate Dr. Romanoff’s development into an independent investigator in global oncology, focusing on strategies to enhance evidence-based breast cancer care delivery in resource- limited settings. This research aims to develop and evaluate strategies to improve healthcare provider adherence to clinical practice guidelines for breast cancer care in Nigeria. Candidate: Dr. Romanoff is a Breast Surgical Oncologist at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, where she is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Global Health and Health System Design, as well as a Global Cancer Disparities Researcher at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK). Aims for candidate development include education and training in: 1) fundamentals of health services research, 2) implementation science, and 3) global breast oncology. With the candidate development and research activities proposed, Dr. Romanoff will develop the tools necessary to become an independent investigator and leader in the field of global oncology, and meet her ultimate goal of improving breast cancer outcomes in resource-limited settings worldwide. Research: This research will use rigorous implementation science frameworks and methodologies to accelerate adherence to the NCCN Harmonized Guidelines for SSA in Nigeria, with the ultimate goal of reducing the evidence-to-practice gap and improving evidence-based breast cancer treatment. To achieve this, Dr. Romanoff will leverage the research infrastructure of the African Research Group for Oncology (ARGO), a research consortium including MSK and 26 Nigerian academic institutions. The overall hypothesis is that implementation of structured, multi-level strategies to enhance adherence to breast cancer care guidelines in Nigeria will be acceptable, appropriate, feasible and adoptable – and show promise to change clinical practice. Study aims are to: 1) identify multi-level barriers to guideline-concordant breast cancer care in Nigeria, 2) develop evidence-based implementation strategies to improve adherence to breast cancer clinical practice guidelines in Nigeria, and 3) rigorously evaluate selected implementation strategies in a pilot study in Nigeria. The rationale that underlies this proposal is that implementation of context-appropriate strat... ## Key facts - **NIH application ID:** 10917147 - **Project number:** 5K08CA267308-03 - **Recipient organization:** ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI - **Principal Investigator:** Anya Romanoff - **Activity code:** K08 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.) - **Funding institute:** NIH - **Fiscal year:** 2024 - **Award amount:** $198,811 - **Award type:** 5 - **Project period:** 2022-09-30 → 2028-02-29 ## Primary source NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10917147 ## Citation > US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10917147, Improving Adherence to Breast Cancer Treatment Guidelines in Nigeria (5K08CA267308-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10917147. Licensed CC0. --- *[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*