The major research focus of this thematic area is to improve cancer-related care, and research studies address costs, quality, access, and public policy considerations. The group has an extensive focus on pharmacovigilance of new cancer therapeutics and supportive care agents, clinical trial participation, and improving access. Under the direction of Dr. Bennett, the Research on Adverse Drug Events and Reports (RADAR) project team includes formal collaborations with the University of Utah School of Medicine, the Oregon Health Sciences Center, the University of New Mexico, and the Department of Veterans Affairs. Dr. Wolf is a leading investigator in the area of communication of pharmaceutical safety messages to low literate individuals. The Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine has dedicated seed funds to support Dr. Wolf's effort to create a center that specializes in health communication for persons with poor health literacy skills. Dr. McKoy is a recipient of an NCI minority supplement (linked to the RHLCCC core grant) with a specific focus in geriatric oncology. With this core support, she studies health care fraud in the provision of prostate cancer pharmaceuticals and pharmacovigilance related to leukemia treatment. With support from the RHLCCC, Dr. Lacouture has created a novel clinic (the SERIES clinic) that rapidly evaluates dermatologic toxicities of novel cancer agents with a focus on the anti-VEGF, tyrosine kinase inhibitors, and EGFR inhibitors. Dissemination of information through meta-analyses is also a focus with the most recent effort (led by Dr. Bennett) on erythropoietin and granulocyte colony stimulating factor therapies. This work is targeted to be policy relevant and is being disseminated through the Cochrane Collaboration, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and the American Society of Hematology (ASH).

Other research areas address the patterns and quality of cancer-related care for racial/ethnic minorities and the medically underserved, with the majority representing work that is funded by peer-reviewed granting agencies, and the remainder funded either by medical societies or philanthropic funds. Drs. Bennett and Chang conduct research on improving decision making for low literacy individuals with prostate cancer. In collaboration with decision scientists and clinicians, they are leading efforts to improve both the patient's and the physician's efforts (VA and American Cancer Society funded). Other grant supported studies include a U01 grant from the NCI to improve navigation through the health care system among racial/ethnic minorities with positive screening tests for cancers of the colon/rectum, prostate, cervix, and breast. This study represents a formal collaboration with the RHLCCC, the University of Illinois-Chicago School of Public Health, the Jesse Brown VA, and the Access Healthcare System (the largest federally-qualified health center in the country). Importantly, philanthropic funds support three college student interns to the Chicago Navigator Project annually (the Pattis Family Foundation). The Chicago Cancer Navigation Project is evaluating clinical and immunologic findings for racial/ethnic minority women who are at high risk for development of cervical cancer.

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