Training Program for Cancer Prevention and Control

PROJECT SUMMARY The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center (OSUCCC) seeks its first renewal of its “Cancer Prevention and Control Training Program” (CPCTP) for postdoctoral fellows. The philosophy of this program is to foster transdisciplinary team science training through high quality mentorship to reduce the cancer burden in our communities. This is done by providing state-of-the-art research training across the cancer control spectrum from the laboratory to the clinic and community, high quality research infrastructure, and relevant didactic course work. The co-Program Directors (co-PDs) are Drs. Peter Shields and Chyke Doubeni. Dr. Ce Shang is the Associate Program Director (APD). The transdisciplinary training includes an emphasis on dual mentorship, transdisciplinary mentorship and biostatistical/bioinformatics advisors. During the current grant cycle, there were several enhancements of the program including: 1) formalizing the mentoring team structure; 2) enabling early stage investigators to serve as primary mentors with senior mentor support; 3) securing an additional $3000 salary stipend through institutional funding; 4) expansion to Nationwide Children’s Hospital for a lifespan approach including research on adolescents and young adults; and, 5) securing an additional fellow slot with institutional funding. Despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, all goals were met for training. To date, there have been 9 fellows enrolled in the program, 2 who have completed their training and are now in academic tenure track positions, and 2 completing their training with offers for academic appointments. Five of 9 were recruited from other institutions. In the next cycle, we will: 1) increase the number of slots from 3 per year to 4 per year (plus the one slot funded through institution support, total 5); 2) develop a new course for Cancer Prevention and Control; 3) begin a yearly scientific symposium for current and former fellows; 4) provide funding to fellows for the use of shared resources; and, 5) enhance efforts to recruit and retain fellows. CPCTP has internal and external advisory committees. There are 39 mentors (including 13 early career mentors [ECM]), all of whom have track records for peer-review funding (ECM have career development awards). Particular strengths among the faculty include expertise in carcinogenesis, cancer risk, behavioral interventions, survivorship, nutrition,, and tobacco control. While the OSU has several other training programs, there are essentially none that overlap with the CPCTP. The training program would be administratively managed through the OSUCCC Center for Cancer Mentoring, Education, Leadership, and Oncology-related Training (CAMELOT), a comprehensive resource established in 2018. Plans are in place for ongoing trainee, mentor and the overall program evaluations.