Community Outreach and Engagement

Beckman Research Institute/City Of Hope, Duarte CA

Investigators

Linked publications, trials & patents

Abstract

Community Outreach and Engagement ABSTRACT The City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center (COHCCC) is a freestanding cancer center whose main campus is located in Duarte, California. The COHCCC Catchment Area includes the entirety of Los Angeles and Orange Counties and portions of Ventura, Riverside, and San Bernardino Counties. The Catchment Area is bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the south and west; Antelope Valley to the north; Santa Clarita and Simi Valley to the west; the metropolitan areas of Riverside and San Bernardino to the east; and the communities of Palm Desert, Murrieta, and San Clemente to the south. The COHCCC Catchment Area covers 9,365 square miles and includes the heart of the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area and more inland communities. We serve a multi-racial, multi-ethnic community of over 17.1 million individuals, which represents approximately 40 percent of all Californians. Remarkably, the population of our Catchment Area is greater than the individual populations of 46 states and greater than the populations of 14 states combined. The COHCCC seeks to use its research and resources to improve the lives of the men, women, and children who live in our Catchment Area, particularly in the more inland regions. The residents we serve face challenges that impact cancer survival, including poverty, obesity, and lack of access. These challenges are uniformly faced whether an individual comes from urban or more rural environments. To achieve this goal, COHCCC has three themes: 1. Identify and pursue challenging questions in cancer research relevant to the people of our Catchment Area. 2. Develop and implement strategies for including underserved populations in our programmatic research. 3. Take advantage of research discoveries, collaborations, networks, and affiliates to extend our reach and to implement creative interventions to increase access and health equity within our Catchment Area, as well as nationally and internationally. To reduce the incidence of cancer in the unique populations we serve within our Catchment Area, we identified the following priorities: ? Biologically aggressive cancers that impact diverse populations in our COHCCC Catchment Area ? Viral-related cancers, including hepatocellular carcinoma and HIV-related malignancies ? Impact of pollution on cancer incidence, with a focus on breast and lung cancer ? Cancers of aging in Asian- and Latino-Americans