Program Overview
The Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, in partnership with the UAMS Rural Research Network, has created the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute Rural Research Award Program. The goal of this program is to support investigators or teams of investigators seeking to collect data for competitive NCI/NIH R01 grant submissions. The program funds projects with a maximum budget of $100,000 each.
Research Areas of Interest
Applications addressing any aspect of cancer research relevant to the health needs of rural Arkansas populations are encouraged. Examples of areas of interest include, but are not limited to:
- Cancer Prevention and Screening – Barriers to cancer prevention and screening, mobile screening units, telehealth interventions, socioeconomic and cultural factors in cancer prevention and screening adherence.
- Cancer Health Disparities and Equity – Rural-urban disparities in cancer incidence and mortality, environmental and occupational exposures contributing to cancer risks, impact of healthcare access on cancer treatment outcomes.
- Cancer Treatment and Outcomes – Barriers to timely diagnosis and treatment, impact of financial toxicity, remote patient monitoring and digital health tools. Comparative effectiveness of cancer care in community hospitals versus academic cancer centers.
- Cancer Survivorship in Rural Arkansas – Unique survivorship challenges in rural Arkansas, management of long-term side effects, quality of life.
- Lifestyle, Behavioral, Environmental, and Genetic Risk Factors – Impact of obesity on cancer risk and outcomes, tobacco use, vaping and lung cancer risk, dietary patterns and cancer risk, environmental exposures, and genetic and epigenetic risk factors.
- Health Communication and Education – Effective community-based interventions to improve cancer awareness, strategies to enhance shared decision-making between rural patients and healthcare providers.
- Implementation Science and Policy – Policies to improve cancer prevention and care, impact of Medicaid expansion on cancer diagnosis and treatment outcomes, strategies for integrating precision medicine and targeted therapies into rural healthcare settings.
Eligibility
Applicants must be faculty members at UAMS, Arkansas Children’s/ACRI, and/or CAVHS with a rank of Assistant Professor or above.
2025 Award Winners
2,4-D Herbicide Exposure and Colorectal Cancer Risk in Rural Arkansas
Uncovering Genomic Drivers of Multiple Myeloma in Rural Arkansans Using Multi-Omics Technology
Leveraging Deuterated Water to Measure in-vivo Tumor and Muscle Proteostasis