This K05 award is requested to allow William H. Redd, PhD, to devote his full-time effort to mentoring postdoctoral trainees and junior faculty and to conduct research in cancer prevention and control. Mentoring will include: I) one-on-one writing and discussion sessions in which research ideas, papers and research protocols are reviewed and revised;2) didactic research seminars in which substantive material relevant to cancer prevention and control is presented and discussed;3) work-in-progress sessions in which research reports written by trainees and/or by faculty are reviewed;4) trainee-led journal club sessions in which trainee selected published research manuscripts are reviewed/discussed;and 5) research seminars in which outside experts in cancer prevention and control present their work and consult on trainee and faculty research proposals and studies. Mentoring sessions and seminars will be scheduled on a weekly or biweekly basis. The primary goal is to enable trainees and junior faculty to become independent researchers and mentors in cancer prevention and control. Research conducted during the tenure of the proposed award will reflect an overall broadening of my interests within the area of cancer prevention and control. I will specifically investigate: 1) cognitive-behavior therapy in the treatment of anxiety-related adjustment problems in adult long term survivors of BMT/SCT in the treatment of cancer;and 2) culturally targeted patient navigation to increase participation in colorectal cancer screening among medically under-served minority groups. Each of these topics will be explored through separate R-01 funded randomized clinical trials. I also propose to address my growing appreciation for the importance of disseminating research findings in cancer prevention and control. I plan to implement a R-25E training program designed to disseminate the intervention methods we have developed. The program will train health care professionals to implement cognitive-behavioral therapy with cancer survivors. Trainees will participate in all aspects/phases of the proposed research.
The importance of exploring the role of behavioral factors in cancer has been highlighted in two reports prepared for the National Cancer Institute by the Cancer Prevention Program Review Group and the Cancer Control Review Group. These reports also note the need to develop a cadre of research scientists with the necessary interdisciplinary skills to address these complex issues. The research and mentoring that Dr. Redd plans to carry out during the course of the proposed K-05 directly addresses these important needs.
