The California Breast Cancer Research Program (CBCRP) of the University of California (an academic institution), Commonweal (a nonprofit organization) and Plumbline Coaching and Consulting (a community-engagement consulting firm) propose to develop and lead Quick Start, an innovative 12-week short-course training program. This program will enhance skills and capabilities of racially and geographically diverse community/academic partnerships in California to conduct community-based participatory research (CBPR) in the urgent fields of inquiry on the environmental causes of and disparities in breast cancer, and the solutions that will reduce the suffering from breast cancer. We propose to do this by offering five annual capacity-building 12-week trainings that improve academic/community teams' ability to form lasting partnerships, develop creative and scientifically rigorous research proposals, and conduct community-based participatory research.
SPECIFIC AIM 1 : Identify new or existing collaborations between academic researchers and California community organizations to conduct research focused on environmental causes and/or social disparities in breast cancer and build their capacity to conduct CBPR SPECIFIC AIM 2: Develop and improve a short-course curriculum that builds capacity for community/academic teams to conduct CBPR.
SPECIFIC AIM 3 : Generate collaborative research projects, through those partnerships trained, that have the potential to transform our understanding of the environmental causes of and/or social disparities in breast cancer.
SPECIFIC AIM 4 : Develop a tested and refined curriculum and accompanying materials and tools for public distribution
It is estimated that up to 70 percent of breast cancer could have an environmental cause. Additionally disparities in breast cancer incidence, mortality, and outcomes are found in race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, class, and neighborhood. This infrastructure building program will focus on communities interested and involved in solving the questions related to environmental causes of and social disparities in breast cancer.
