Oklahoma Tribal, Rural, Urban Cancer Screening Trial ACCESS Hub

The overarching goal for the Stephenson Cancer Center (SCC) Oklahoma Tribal, Rural, Urban Cancer Screening Trial (OK TRUST) ACCESS Hub is to enhance capacity for increasing cancer screening trials accrual and participation among tribal, rural and urban populations across Oklahoma. OK TRUST is designed specifically to accrue large numbers of participants from these groups, as tribal, rural, and low-income urban populations have disproportionately high cancer rates, but low rates of participation in clinical trials at the national level. To increase clinical trial accessibility in rural locations, OK TRUST Affiliate Organizations include a large, rural federally qualified health center (FQHC) with seven primary clinics, two rural Tribes operating 10 tribal primary care clinics, and another rural Tribe closely associated with three Indian Health Service clinics. As inaccessibility to clinical trials also affects low-income patients living in urban areas, OK TRUST includes two large urban FQHCs located in Oklahoma City, one operating 21 clinics serving predominately Spanish-speaking patients and the other operating 7 clinics serving many Black/African American patients, and University of Oklahoma clinics in Oklahoma City and Tulsa that also serve large numbers of Black/African American patients. OK Trust also includes the Oklahoma City Indian Clinic - the largest urban Indian healthcare facility in the nation. In aggregate, 80,000 persons aged 45 to 70 years receive healthcare at the OK TRUST Affiliate Organizations. Given the historical distrust between American Indian communities and academic researchers and centers, it is notable that several Tribes and American Indianserving clinical facilities are participating in a project collecting biological data. These partners are involved because they understand the impact that new cancer screening tests may have on reducing cancer disparities among American Indian people. They also understand that a robust governance structure will guide use and sharing of data involving American Indian participants, because Tribes, as sovereign nations, have rights that are unique among underrepresented groups in the United States. Specifically, OK TRUST will implement processes to: 1) Provide leadership and administrative support needed to conduct CSRN trials across tribal, rural, and urban affiliate organizations in the Oklahoma catchment area and participate in shaping the CSRN emerging research agenda. Provide leadership and administrative support to enhance the infrastructure necessary to ensure Cancer Screening Research Network trial availability and participation across a diverse set of tribal, rural, and urban Affiliate Organizations; 2) Expand access to and increase enrollment in cancer screening trials by offering the Vanguard study, and future studies, in participants’ home communities and healthcare facilities; and 3) Leverage SCC’s nationally recognized expertise in the provision of clinical trials to include regulatory and operational support for cancer screening trials offered in tribal, rural and urban locations statewide.