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- Posted Tuesday October 25, 2005
Arizona receives a $4 Million American Indian Cancer Health Disparities Grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Phoenix, Arizona, September 25, 2005 - The National Cancer
Institute recently announced the award of $18 million to reduce
cancer health disparities through it's Community Networks to Reduce
Cancer Health Disparities through Education, Research and Training
Program. The Southwest American Indian Collaborative Network
(SAICN) received one of the 18-22 grants awarded nationwide. This
network, which aims to reduce cancer health disparities among
American Indians, is a collaborative effort lead by a core group of
professionals from the Inter Tribal Council of Arizona, Inc (ITCA),
the Arizona Cancer Center (AZCC), the Phoenix Indian Medical Center
(PIMC), the University of California at Los Angeles, the
Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGEN), and the Western
Regional Community Clinical Oncology Program (WRCCOP).
The collaboration was made possible, in part, through the
continuation of the Special Populations Network (SPN) grant "An
Innovative RFA for Minority Health Research and Minority
Advancement," also known as the American Indian Oncology Program.
Because of the work of all partners involved during the past four
years of SPN, a strong framework for collaborative partnership was
established. "This grant is a testament to what can be achieved
when programs work together for a common purpose," said Dr.
Charlton Wilson of the Phoenix Indian Medical Center.
"The fundamental aim of the Southwest American Indian
Collaborative Network (SAICN)," according to Dr. Kathryn Coe, the
Principal Investigator of the grant, "is to eliminate cancer health
disparities among American Indians in Arizona and the Southwest by
closing the gap between the health needs of the community and the
promise of cancer prevention and cure made possible through a
responsive health delivery and research system." This aim will be
achieved through support of participatory education, training, and
research programs driven by American Indian community needs. Cancer
is the second leading cause of death among American Indians. The
initial focus includes those cancers affecting American Indians in
the Southwest: breast, cervical, skin, lung, and colon.
"Participation in SAICN increases our effectiveness as a whole to
address cancer health disparity and expand resources. The hope is
to increase our ability to provide pertinent health programs
through our relationship with ITCA and a commitment by all partners
to include both urban and rural American Indians involvement at a
fundamental level," said Dr. David King, Medical Director of
Western Regional CCOP.
TGen is one of the new partners of this broadened network,
supplementing the research and training component, to ensure that
advances in molecular medicine and genomics are also integrated
into cancer treatment and prevention. "TGen is honored and excited
to be a part of this important Network," said Dr. Jeffrey Trent,
President and Scientific Director of TGen. "We look forward to
working with the network partners to ensure that the benefits of
TGen's research, specifically cancer therapeutics and diagnostics,
are applicable and accessible to American Indian cancer patients."
Arizona, according to Census 2000 summary data, retains its
standing as the state with the largest American Indian population
residing on Indian lands. Phoenix has one of the highest
proportions of American Indians among the top ten cities in the
nation and Arizona is home to twenty-one federally recognized
tribes. Because of the rural nature of many tribal communities,
services commonly available to cancer patients in urban areas are
not available to American Indians in their community settings.
"This is a great opportunity for American Indians to access the
expertise and resources of partner agencies to develop approaches
to comprehensive cancer prevention and treatment" said Mr. John R.
Lewis, Executive Director of the Inter Tribal Council of Arizona,
Inc.
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For additional information, contact:
John R. Lewis, Executive Director
Inter Tribal Council of Arizona, Inc.
2214 North Central Avenue, Suite #100
Phoenix, Arizona 85004.
Tel: 602.258.4822
Fax: 602.258.4825
Email: [email protected]
Web-site: http://www.itcaonline.com
