Cancer Prevention, Control and Survivorship Research Program

Overview

Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center's Cancer Prevention, Control and Survivorship Research Program conducts innovative research to reduce cancer risk and burden, decrease health disparities, advance health equity in our catchment area populations and beyond, and improve quality of life and function during and after cancer therapy.

Research in this program has several crosscutting themes:

Overcoming cancer health disparities and driving health equity.
Fostering community and patient engagement.
Strengthening user-centered artificial intelligence.
Improving uptake of interventions through implementation science.
Improving cancer communication.

The program's goal is to improve the equitable uptake of evidence-based cancer prevention and control strategies to reduce cancer burden in our catchment areas and beyond.

Research aims

The Cancer Prevention, Control and Survivorship Research Program has three research aims:

Aim 1: Cancer risk assessment and prevention. The purpose of this aim is to identify risk factors that contribute to cancer risk and burden, including behavioral risk factors such as tobacco use and social risk factors such as lack of access to care. The purpose is also to develop, implement and evaluate interventions that promote adoption of cancer risk assessment tools and prevention strategies to advance health equity targeting priority populations and cancers in our catchment areas and beyond. These priority populations include rural, Hispanic, Native American and non-Hispanic Black people. Priority cancer areas include colorectal, breast and prostate cancers.

Aim 2: Cancer screening and treatment decision-making. The purpose of this aim is to develop, implement and evaluate multilevel approaches to promote cancer screening that meet guidelines for colorectal, cervical, breast and other cancers. The purpose is also to evaluate innovative, culturally responsive educational and decision support tools to aid people at the point of diagnosis and facilitate shared decision-making about cancer treatment.

Aim 3: Symptom control and survivorship. The purpose of this aim is to assess predictors of symptoms, function and health after a cancer diagnosis. It's also to develop and evaluate interventions to mitigate the detrimental impacts of cancer and its treatment on function and quality of life. These interventions include digital tools to reduce barriers to care, symptom-focused medications and strategies, and novel collaborative care models.

Program leadership

Janice Krieger, Ph.D.
Dr. Krieger is a communication scientist at Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center in Jacksonville, Florida, and a professor of clinical translational science at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science. She is also associate director of Community Outreach and Education at Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center in Jacksonville. Dr. Krieger's research focuses on designing, implementing and evaluating culturally responsive interventions that use novel technologies to facilitate precision approaches to increase cancer health equity and enhance patient-centered decision-making in diagnosis and treatment.

Kathryn J. Ruddy, M.D.
Dr. Ruddy is a medical oncologist at Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center in Rochester, Minnesota, and a professor of oncology at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science. She is also chair of the Population Science and Community Interventions Disease Group in the Cancer Center. Dr. Ruddy is a nationally recognized leader in cancer survivorship and symptom control. Her research focuses on toxicity prediction and mitigation.

Lila J. Rutten, Ph.D.
Dr. Rutten is a social and behavioral scientist at Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center in Rochester, Minnesota, and a professor of health services research at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science. She is also chair of the Division of Epidemiology in the Department of Quantitative Health Sciences at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. Dr. Rutten's research focuses on implementing and evaluating strategies to promote adoption of evidenced-based cancer prevention and population screening.