Integrating Self-Management Education with Cancer Survivorship Care

• Find the latest publication in this study along with others in the project here.
• Read more about Dr. Schwartz and the Childhood Cancer Survivorship Program on the CHOP Research blog.

Citation:

King-Dowling S, Psihogios AM, Hill-Kayser C, Szalda D, O’Hagan B, Darabos K, Daniel LC, Barakat LP, Fleisher L, Maurer LA, Velázquez-Martin B, Jacobs LA, Hobbie W, Ginsberg JP, Vachani CC, Metz JM, Schwartz LA. Acceptability and feasibility of survivorship care plans and accompanying mobile health intervention for adolescent and young adult survivors of childhood cancer. Pediatr Blood Cancer. 2021 Mar;68(3):e28884. doi: 10.1002/pbc.28884. PMID: 33416214

The transition between adolescence and adulthood can be a bumpy ride. Add overcoming cancer to that journey and self-care can get swept up among the many developmental landmarks. A study has been underway where researchers aim to reach these young adults through a mobile app, delivering a survivorship plan and management of their post-cancer care.

“Ultimately, this study could inform a more tailored approach to intervention to keep AYA (Adolescent & Young Adult) survivors at risk for poor self-management and disengagement more motivated and engaged,” Dr. Schwartz said. “They survived cancer. We want to protect that investment and have them live long healthy adult lives.” Lisa Schwartz, PhD is Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania and a psychologist in the Division of Oncology and the Childhood Cancer Survivorship Program at CHOP. Integrating Self-Management Education with Cancer Survivorship Care was funded by the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) as a Special Interest Project (SIP) in the UPenn Prevention Research Center from 2015-2018. The SIPs receive funding through competitive calls for proposals to address topics of interest or gaps in scientific evidence.

Pediatric Blood & Cancer published the study’s findings in their article “Acceptability and feasibility of survivorship care plans and an accompanying mobile health intervention for adolescent and young adult survivors of childhood cancer.” It was concluded that the mobile intervention was accessible and helpful to users, but it needs more refinement and research.

 

 

A review of the effects of UV filters on the environment and human health

The National Academies presented a public release webinar of a new report on Tuesday, August 9 from 1:00pm to 2:00pm EDT. The report, Review of Fate, Exposure, and Effects of Sunscreens in Aquatic Environments and Implications for Sunscreen Usage and Human Health, calls on the U.S. EPA to conduct an ecological risk assessment of UV filters to characterize possible risks to aquatic ecosystems and the species that live in them. The report contains information useful for such an assessment. It also describes the role of sunscreens in preventing skin cancer and what is known about how human health could be affected by potential changes in usage. The committee chairs shared key takeaways and responded to questions during the webinar.

For further details about the study, visit the project webpage.

UPennPRC and CHBR director and UPenn DBEI faculty, Karen Glanz, PhD, MPH, is on the committee. Dr. Glanz addressed the impact of UV filters on human health and stated the many factors involved, including correct application of sunscreen and the use of other barriers such as rash guards. Read the article on the report that she co-authored for The Conversation, here.

Download the report

View webinar slides

Watch the webinar

Penn Medicine Nurses Week – Community Day, May 14

In celebration of Nurses Week, HUP Engagement Team is planning a Community Day at Malcolm X Park where nurses can meet our community where they live and play and where they can play a role in sharing health education and awareness. Save the date for this outdoor event in Malcolm X Park, 400 S. 51st St, Philadelphia, from 11AM to 3PM on May 14, 2022.

Penn Medicine Nurses Week Flyer

 

 

Call for Proposals: Connecting Penn Research to Communities

The Community Engagement and Research (CEAR) Core of the Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) at the University of Pennsylvania is making pilot grant funding available for research with public and community health relevance. We are especially interested in proposals that address prevention and management of heart disease and cancer risk.

This call for proposals is open to faculty and postdocs with significant public and community health-related experience at Penn and is intended to:

  • Foster interdisciplinary research in public health at Penn that will have meaningful results at the community level.
  • Assist in garnering external support for large-scale studies in the field of public health.
  • Encourage additional faculty and staff at Penn to become involved in public health research.
  • Identify the innovative methodologies in the field of public health that have the potential of informing local, state, and national policy and programming.

Click HERE for the Call for Proposals.

DEADLINE EXTENDED! Applications for the 2022-2023 funding cycle are due Thursday, April 7, 2022 by 5pm for a June 1st, 2022 start date.

Any questions should be directed to Krista Scheffey (krista.scheffey@pennmedicine.upenn.edu).

CEAR Core also awards pilot grant funds through Community-Driven Research Day (CDRD). Community-Driven Research Day is a collaboration between community groups and researchers at Penn, the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), Temple University, Drexel University, and Thomas Jefferson University. CDRD is an opportunity for members of community organizations and academic researchers to come together to meet and discuss potential collaborations and community-academic partnerships.

2022 Community Driven Research Day – January 27

Community-Driven Research Day (CDRD) encourages collaborations between researchers and community-based organizations (CBOs) and community groups who have research questions that they are interested in answering, specifically in ways that address social determinants of health. The 12th annual CDRD will take place virtually on Thursday, January 27, 2022 from 9:30am-12:30pm EST.

Through virtual presentations in themed breakout sessions, CBOs and community groups will highlight their questions to CDRD participants, who will include area nonprofits, community groups, public sector partners, and researchers from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, The University of Pennsylvania, Temple University, Drexel University, Thomas Jefferson University, and Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. CBOs, community groups, academic researchers, and students will be able to virtually meet and discuss mutually-beneficial collaborations around the 12th Annual CDRD theme of “Advancing Health and Equity Through Community-Academic Partnerships.”

Following CDRD, a competitive pilot grant program supports partnerships formed as a result of participation in CDRD between academic researchers and community-based organizations. The eight $10,000 grants are limited to faculty of The University of Pennsylvania, Temple University, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Drexel University, Thomas Jefferson University, and Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine who have significant community health-related research experience, and are working in collaboration with community partners who present at CDRD.

CDRD Details & Additional Information

The 12th Annual CDRD will be held virtually on Thursday, January 27, 2022 from 9:30am-12:30pm EST. Registration is now open for both presenters and attendees.

Call for Submissions: CBOs and Community Groups

CBOs and community groups interested in developing partnerships to conduct research are urged to participate in an interactive virtual poster presentation that will highlight the organization’s/group’s mission, goals, and major accomplishments. Posters/Powerpoint will also display questions that they are interested in answering about partnering for healthy and safe communities.

Submissions are due by Monday, January 10, 2022Click here to apply to present.

Register to Attend: Non-Presenting Participants

All non-presenting individuals interested in attending Community-Driven Research Day, including academic faculty, staff, students, lay community members, and representatives of non-academic institutions should register by Thursday, January 20, 2022Click here to register.

Click here to access the 2022 CDRD flyer.

Two UPenn PRC investigators receive Penn’s Awards of Excellence for mentorship

Leadership recognized

On October 26, 2021, the dean of the Perelman School of Medicine, announced the recipients of the 2021 Awards of Excellence. J. Larry Jameson, MD, PhD writes, “The distinguished awardees exemplify our profession’s highest values of scholarship, teaching, innovation, commitment to service, leadership, inclusion, and dedication to patient care. They epitomize the preeminence and impact we all strive to achieve. Each recipient was chosen by a committee of distinguished faculty from the Perelman School of Medicine or the University of Pennsylvania. The contributions of these clinicians and scientists exemplify the outstanding quality of patient care, mentoring, research, and teaching of our world-class faculty.”

We were pleased to learn that two of our colleagues received awards for their years mentorship, Frances K. Barg, PhD, MEd and Carmen E. Guerra, MD, MSCE, FACP.

The awardees:

Frances Barg, PhD, MeD

Arthur K. Asbury Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award to Frances K. Barg, PhD, MEd, Emeritus Professor of Family Medicine and Community Health. Dr. Barg is a pioneer in the field of qualitative health research and is a role model for medical faculty who wish to pursue research that incorporates patient and community perspectives.

Dr. Barg contributed to our project, “Building Local Community Health Leadership for Action on Preventing Chronic Disease,” and served as an advisor to the UPenn Prevention Research Center.

 

Duncan Van Dusen Professionalism Award for Faculty to Carmen E. Guerra, MD, MSCE, FACP, Ruth C. and Raymond G. Perelman Professor of Medicine in the Division of General Internal Medicine and Associate Director of Diversity and Outreach, Abramson Cancer Center. Dr. Guerra’s multifaceted leadership in support of diversity, equity, and inclusion has had far-reaching impact across Penn Medicine.

Dr. Guerra serves as a co-investigator on our Cancer Prevention and Control Research Network, and works with Dr. Glanz in the Abramson Cancer Center Cancer Control Program.

 

Read the full article here.

Making progress in the area of food insecurity & nutrition environments

NIH Virtual Workshop banner

On Tuesday, September 21, 2021, UPenn PRC director, Karen Glanz, PhD, MPH, co-chaired an NIH (trans-NIH) workshop called Food Insecurity, Neighborhood Food Environment, and Nutrition Health Disparities: State of the Science.  It was presented virtually for three days, and had over 3,500 registered participants. There were nine sessions, including lively panel discussions. These discussions gave the speakers an opportunity to address attendees’ questions.

Angela Odoms-Young, PhD, also co-chaired the event. Dr. Odoms-Young is an Associate Professor, in the Division of Nutritional Sciences, College of Human Ecology/College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, at Cornell University.

All live content is available for viewing until September 2022

The Labroots event portal.

Angela Odoms-Young, PhD and Karen Glanz, PhD, MPH, co-chairs and moderators of the workshop.

Overview

Participants viewed three days of presentations and panel discussions. On Day 3, Dr. Glanz shared key takeaways with the following observations.

 

First, “health equity is defined as the absence of unfair and avoidable or remediable differences in health among population groups defined socially, economically, demographically or geographically.”

Health equity means increasing opportunities for everyone to live the healthiest life possible, no matter who we are, where we live, or how much money we make. (RWJF)

In addition, relationships between walkability & activity inequality hold within cities in the USA of similar income, meaning, walkable environments lead to lower activity inequality.

Dr. Glanz believes that to make significant progress in the area of food insecurity & nutrition environments we need the following:

  • Innovation & flexibility
  • Collaboration & coordination
  • Balance internal & external validity
  • Address supply AND demand
  • Study individual & aggregate effects
  • Always think about people in need

 

Lastly, increasing the fluidity between research, policy and practice at the Federal level, such as the NIH, USDA, CDC, and other agencies. State and local levels can address nutrition, health, housing, safety, and economic development.

 

We can create equity by incentivizing collaboration, not competition, such as the Gates Foundation global initiatives.

In Conclusion

Dr. Glanz closed her summary with two encouraging quotes.

 

…Science and technology are powerful tools, but we must decide how best to use them. Perhaps the most important point is to ensure that science never becomes divorced from the basic human feeling of empathy with our fellow beings.

Dalai Lama

The Universe in a Single Atom: The Convergence of Science and Spirituality (2006)

Work hard,
Work smart,
And always have fun

 

Matt Wilpers

Peloton

You can see an agenda of the event here. Attendee and presenter comments, including highlights from the presentations can be seen by clicking the #NIHNutrtionEquity hashtag in Twitter. The video captured of the 3-day event will be available on October 7, 2021.

 

Healthy Weigh Study Results

What strategy works better for weight loss in overweight employees?

  • Financial incentives
  • Environment change strategies
  • A combination of the two,
  • On-your-own weight-loss efforts

 

Drs. Karen Glanz and Kevin Volpp, along with the team at the UPenn PRC, found that participants in all groups lost weight. Incidentally, the financial incentives group lost slightly more weight, but none of the strategies netted significantly greater weight losses than the others. The results from their Healthy Weigh Study are currently published in the September 2021 edition of JAMA Network Open.

 

In 2015, the University of Pennsylvania Prevention Research Center (UPenn PRC) conducted a study to test strategies to achieve weight loss and maintain weight loss in urban worksites in Philadelphia.

First, researchers collected data on participants who earned daily financial rewards, in addition to those guided on positive changes to their environment.

Second, they compared each strategy, separately and together, to see which one helped the participants achieve weight-loss.

Third, the team compared that data to those who tried to lose weight on their own.

Ultimately, the goal of the study was to manage obesity by improving nutrition and physical activity, in order to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and other chronic health conditions.

 

 

 

 

JAMA Healthy Weigh_visual

Publication

Glanz K, Shaw P, Kwong P, Choi J, Chung A, Zhu J, Huang Q, Hoffer K, Volpp K. Effect of Financial Incentives and Environmental Strategies on Weight Loss in The Healthy Weigh Study: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Network Open 2021;4(9): e2124132. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.24132

Assessing and Addressing Nutrition and Health in our Communities

Learn more and register for this 3-day workshop addressing food insecurity, neighborhood food environment, and nutrition health disparities.

Karen Glanz, PhD, MPH is among the organizers and will be participating in this important event. The goal is to review the state of the science, identify research gaps and opportunities related to food insecurity and the neighborhood food environment, and suggest innovative research strategies that will inform policy and practice to address and prevent diet-related health disparities and promote health equity.

The virtual event is hosted by the National Institutes of Health, admission is free, and it is open to the public.

2021 Community Scholars Symposium and Pitch Presentation

The Intersection of Community, Academia, and Grant-Making

Friday, April 9, 2021


9:00AM – 12PM (Virtual)

 

Register for the fifth annual Penn Community Scholars Symposium: The Intersection of Community, Academia, and Grant-Making. This symposium offers insights into developing, pitching, and funding innovative project ideas that utilize community-academic partnerships, while offering an opportunity for networking among community, academics, and grant-makers. Pitches are judged by a panel of funders and academics and the top three presenters will receive a financial award.

Meet the Community Scholars:

Erin Davison, Philadelphia Legal Assistance

Jule Anne Henstenburg, MANNA

Andy Kucer, Students Run Philly Style

Colin MacFarlane, Nationalities Service Center

Sam Margolis, Anti-Violence Partnership of Philadelphia

Anthony Singleton, Educators 4 Education

Ashli Stephens, Worth Womb Work Inc.

 

Keynote Speakers:

Vanessa Briggs, Brandywine Health Foundation

Lynette Medley, No More Secrets

 

Expert Panel:

Victoria Cargill, MD, MSCE, Baltimore City Health Department

Heather Falck, IBC Foundation Programs

Ann Marie Healy, Philadelphia Health Partnership

Laura Kind McKenna, The Patricia Kind Family Foundation

Raina Merchant, MD, UPenn

Douglas Wiebe, PhD, UPenn

 

The Penn community Scholars program is supported by the Penn Injury Science Center with funding from the Office of the Provost of the University of Pennsylvania.

Research Day 2021 – Virtual & Open to the Public

Former US Preventive Services Task Force Chief Inspires Real Change: Join Us!

The U.S. lags behind other developed nations in many health outcomes. How can we move from potential to actual health improvement? Be our guest virtually for DBEI & CCEB Research Day on March 24 and hear our 1:30 p.m.keynote by Sue Curry, PhD, former chair of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, and an expert on translating research into policy. Find a detailed schedule, create an account, and register here.

 Attend the full event from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., and be with us as:

* Our top 10 poster presenters give five-minute flash talks and compete for prizes.
* Faculty members share their high-impact research.

  • Biostatistics: Hongzhe Li, PhD: Interrogating the Gut Microbiome — Estimation of Growth Rates and Prediction of Biosynthetic Gene Clusters.
  • Pamela Shaw, PhD: Efficient Study Designs for the Analysis of Error-Prone Electronic Health Record (EHR) Data.
  • Epidemiology: Sean Hennessy, PharmD, PhD: Medicines as Thermo-Protectants?
  • Informatics: Blanca Himes, PhD: Enhancing Electronic Health Record Data to Address Health Disparities.
  • Dr. Curry presents “Population Health: Making Science Matter,” the Brian L. Strom Visiting Professorship Lecture. Dr. Curry is an emeritus Dean and Distinguished Professor in the Department of Health Management and Policy of the University of Iowa College of Public Health.

Learn more and register for the event here.

 

 

Dr. Glanz named to new NAS committee

National collaboration on sunscreen science

Karen Glanz, PhD, MPH, a George A. Weiss University Professor at the University of Pennsylvania, has been named to a new National Academy of Sciences committee: Committee on Environmental Impact of Currently Marketed Sunscreens and Potential Human Impacts of Changes in Sunscreen Usage. The study is sponsored by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and managed by the Ocean Studies Board and the National Academy of Medicine’s Health and Medicine Division.

This study will review the state of science on the use of currently marketed sunscreen ingredients, their fate and effects in aquatic environments, and the potential public health implications associated with changes in sunscreen usage.

 

Why is the study being done? 

Concerns have been raised about the potential toxicity of sunscreens to a variety of marine and freshwater aquatic organisms, particularly corals. At the same time, there are concerns that people will use less sunscreen rather than substituting sunscreens with UV filters that are considered environmentally safe.

Karen Glanz has been conducting research in skin cancer prevention for more than 25 years.  She is internationally recognized as a leader in the study of human behavior related to sun protection, and commercial aspects of sunscreen sales and purchases.