Abstract SS02-02: Increasing diversity in the cancer research workforce: Funding opportunities.

Abstract

Abstract Ethnic and racial groups and the socioeconomically disadvantaged continue to suffer higher rates of cancer incidence and mortality than the general population. This disparity is compounded by a dearth of researchers and physicians from these populations entering a career in cancer science. In 1999, the NCI launched the Continuing Umbrella of Research Experiences (CURE) training program, which today remains a major part of the Center to Reduce Cancer Health Disparities (CRCHD) approach to addressing cancer health disparities. CURE is a holistic program that provides funding opportunities to underrepresented students and investigators interested in pursuing basic, translational, clinical, population or behavioral cancer research. The CURE approach is to develop a pipeline of students and investigators that will apply for the various funding mechanisms offered by the NCI at different levels of training and education. As such, CURE offers funding from high school to early stage investigators interested in acquiring training and career development experiences in cancer research. The goals of the CURE program are to: 1) increase the size of the talent pool, 2) emphasize strategic and scientific areas of greatest needs, and 3) expand and extend the period of training. The long-term goal of the CURE program is to increase the number of competitive investigators from underserved populations conducting cancer research and cancer health disparities research. The CURE program is based on a pipeline approach that includes mentorship as a key component at all levels of education and training. It provides trainees and mentors with programmatic support that helps them to navigate the NCI/NIH system, decide on the next steps in career development of the trainees, emphasize training in peer review through a mock review and ensure protected time for the trainees' research efforts. The purpose of this presentation is to provide you with a general view of the CURE program, its approach, the various funding mechanisms offered at different levels of education and training and finally inform you of some outcomes of the CURE program in the last ten years. Citation Format: H. Nelson Aguila. Increasing diversity in the cancer research workforce: Funding opportunities. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Fifth AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2012 Oct 27-30; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2012;21(10 Suppl):Abstract nr SS02-02.