The aims of this proposal are to (1) enable the candidate to further develop her research program focused on improving cancer screening and prevention in older adults and (2) use her research program as a platform for mentoring junior patient-oriented investigators interested in aging research, both within Geriatrics and within the medical subspecialties. The candidate is a Geriatrician who has established a high-impact independent clinical research program that is well funded with an outstanding publication record. In the 10 years since completing her Geriatrics fellowship she has established herself as a successful mentor of students, fellows, and junior faculty who have published high-impact aging research, become successfully funded, and continue to participate in patient-oriented research in aging. The candidate has developed an extensive research portfolio focused on the outcomes of cancer screening in elders that has sought to improve the targeting of cancer screening by better defining the risks and benefits, particularly as a function of life expectancy. This work has influenced screening guidelines in the U.S., which have used this research to recommend that screening decisions focus more on life expectancy than chronological age and better recognize the potential harms of screening. This proposal will provide the candidate with protected time to expand her research in a new direction focused on surveillance testing for cancer recurrence in older cancer survivors. Surveillance in older cancer survivors poses similar issues to screening in that it can potentially benefit elders by finding recurrent cancers when still treatable but also may cause substantial morbidity through overtreatment. The research in this proposal will inform decision making in this area by better defining the risks and benefits of surveillance testing in older prostate cancer survivors. This new direction maintains her research focus while building new collaborations with oncology. The candidate will also develop a formal mentoring program with plans for the recruitment, selection, development, and evaluation of mentees who will become leaders in aging research. Each mentee will have a focused career development plan in which they complete research projects and develop the skills needed to become independent investigators in aging research. This proposal integrates the candidate's mentoring program into the outstanding clinical research training environment at UCSF, leveraging her leadership positions in the Division of Geriatrics and the Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) Career Development (KL2 Scholars) Program to recruit more mentees interested in aging research.

Public Health Relevance

This proposal will have unique public health importance because (1) it will increase mentoring of new clinical investigators interested in conducting research to improve care for the rapidly growing elderly population, and (2) it will inform national guidelines and clinical decision-making by better defining the risks and benefits of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) surveillance practices in elderly prostate cancer survivors.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute on Aging (NIA)
Type
Midcareer Investigator Award in Patient-Oriented Research (K24)
Project #
4K24AG041180-05
Application #
8854012
Study Section
Neuroscience of Aging Review Committee (NIA)
Program Officer
Eldadah, Basil A
Project Start
2011-09-30
Project End
2017-05-31
Budget Start
2016-06-15
Budget End
2017-05-31
Support Year
5
Fiscal Year
2016
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
University of California San Francisco
Department
Internal Medicine/Medicine
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
094878337
City
San Francisco
State
CA
Country
United States
Zip Code
94118
Suskind, Anne M; Zhao, Shoujun; Walter, Louise C et al. (2018) Mortality and Functional Outcomes After Minor Urological Surgery in Nursing Home Residents: A National Study. J Am Geriatr Soc 66:909-915
Shi, Ying; Fung, Kathy Z; John Boscardin, W et al. (2018) Individualizing PSA Monitoring Among Older Prostate Cancer Survivors. J Gen Intern Med 33:602-604
Yang, Emmy; Lisha, Nadra E; Walter, Louise et al. (2018) Urinary Incontinence in a National Cohort of Older Women: Implications for Caregiving and Care Dependence. J Womens Health (Larchmt) 27:1097-1103
Wong, Melisa L; McMurry, Timothy L; Schumacher, Jessica R et al. (2018) Comorbidity Assessment in the National Cancer Database for Patients With Surgically Resected Breast, Colorectal, or Lung Cancer (AFT-01, -02, -03). J Oncol Pract 14:e631-e643
Wong, Melisa L; Paul, Steven M; Mastick, Judy et al. (2018) Characteristics Associated With Physical Function Trajectories in Older Adults With Cancer During Chemotherapy. J Pain Symptom Manage 56:678-688.e1
Suskind, Anne M; Walter, Louise C; Zhao, Shoujun et al. (2017) Functional Outcomes After Transurethral Resection of the Prostate in Nursing Home Residents. J Am Geriatr Soc 65:699-703
Partin, Melissa R; Gravely, Amy A; Burgess Jr, James F et al. (2017) Contribution of patient, physician, and environmental factors to demographic and health variation in colonoscopy follow-up for abnormal colorectal cancer screening test results. Cancer 123:3502-3512
Suskind, Anne M; Jin, Chengshi; Walter, Louise C et al. (2017) Frailty and the Role of Obliterative versus Reconstructive Surgery for Pelvic Organ Prolapse: A National Study. J Urol 197:1502-1506
Pangilinan, Jayce; Quanstrom, Kathryn; Bridge, Mark et al. (2017) The Timed Up and Go Test as a Measure of Frailty in Urologic Practice. Urology 106:32-38
Ko, Myung S; Fung, Kathy Z; Shi, Ying et al. (2016) Barrett's Esophagus Commonly Diagnosed in Elderly Men with Limited Life Expectancy. J Am Geriatr Soc 64:e109-e111

Showing the most recent 10 out of 43 publications