The Lustgarten Equity, Accessibility, and Diversity (LEAD) Project
The Lustgarten Equity, Accessibility, and Diversity (LEAD) Project was created to increase the recruitment and retention of underrepresented groups in pancreatic cancer clinical trials. The supported projects are designed to identify and address barriers to participation and develop and implement specific tools to expand community outreach, patient education, and/or clinical recruitment staff.
The inaugural LEAD grant was awarded to Jen Jen Yeh, MD, Professor and Vice Chair of Research, Surgery, Division of Oncology Professor, Pharmacology Member, UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, for the PROmoting CLinicAL TrIal EngageMent for Pancreatic Cancer App Study (PROCLAIM Study). As a grant recipient, Dr. Yeh will receive $150,000 annually for three consecutive years to support her research.
Dr. Yeh’s PROCLAIM Study, in partnership with Dr. Ugwuji Maduekwe, MD, and her team at the Medical College of Wisconsin, will focus on breaking down barriers to recruiting diverse populations, such as distrust, poor communication, racial bias, and culturally discordant clinical trial materials, via a mobile health technology initiative. Mobile health technology will be used as an educational and communication tool fostering open discussion between Black people with pancreatic cancer and their cancer teams, increasing clinical trial participation.
