# Cancer Research Career Enhancement and Related Activities

> **NIH NIH P30** · UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH · 2020 · $143,910

## Abstract

CANCER RESEARCH CAREER ENHANCEMENT AND RELATED ACTIVITIES
ABSTRACT
Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) provides significant resources, infrastructure, and dedicated faculty to support
our goals of providing cancer-focused training across the educational continuum, increasing multidisciplinary
research, and increasing diversity in the biomedical workforce. HCI provides mentorship and financial support
for junior faculty, extending professional development beyond the traditional training phases. HCI’s efforts in
Cancer Research Career Enhancement and Related Activities (CRCERA) are led by two dedicated educators,
Donald Ayer, PhD, and Kolawole Okuyemi, MD, MPH; together they bring both basic science and
clinical/diversity perspectives. To ensure integration and programmatic execution across the different
University of Utah (U of U) academic units and Cancer Center Programs, Drs. Ayer and Okuyemi work closely
with a diverse Cancer Education Committee and report regularly on progress and plans to the Research
Leadership Council, the Research Executive Committee, the HCI Cabinet, and the External Advisory Board.
HCI supports training beginning with formal research opportunities at the high school level with our National
Cancer Institute-funded PathMaker Program and extending through the undergraduate, graduate, medical, and
postdoctoral fellow training phases. At each training phase, we foster multidisciplinary research in an inclusive
and diverse environment that deepens our trainees’ research skills and perspectives on the cancer challenge.
Junior faculty benefit from extensive mentoring opportunities, many in conjunction with the U of U’s National
Institutes of Health-funded Center for Clinical and Translational Science. Through HCI’s award-winning patient
and public education-focused Cancer Learning Center and a variety of outreach activities, HCI engages the
community in discussions and learning about cancer.
Additional strengths of this effort are: 1) Cancer Training 360, a course designed to give trainees a deeper
understanding of the impacts of cancer by focusing on the mechanistic, clinical, population, and psychosocial
aspects of specific cancers; 2) research experiences for high school students and undergraduates from
underrepresented groups; 3) seminars and symposia, including trainee-focused symposia; 4) opportunities for
trainees to appreciate and understand the patient experience via tumor board attendance and physician
shadowing; 5) financial support for training in transdisciplinary research; and 6) HCI postdoctoral trainee
Individual Development Plans, mentorship teams, and representation on the Research Leadership Council.
In the future, our training efforts will include additional career enhancement opportunities, introduction of
fellowship writing workshops for predoctoral and postdoctoral trainees, and development of additional training
and trainee funding programs that foster multidisciplinary and collaborative research.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9935889
- **Project number:** 2P30CA042014-31
- **Recipient organization:** UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH
- **Principal Investigator:** Donald E Ayer
- **Activity code:** P30 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $143,910
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** — → —

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9935889

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9935889, Cancer Research Career Enhancement and Related Activities (2P30CA042014-31). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9935889. Licensed CC0.

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