Community Outreach and Engagement
Community Outreach and Engagement (COE) is housed within the Center of Community Alliance for Research & Education, which was created in 2006 to facilitate City of Hope's comprehensive cancer center's response to reduce Catchment Area cancer burden and to fully integrate and amplify community outreach and engagement throughout City of Hope comprehensive cancer center.
Engaging our community partners is a top priority for City of Hope's comprehensive cancer center director and leaders toward addressing the Catchment Area burden and disparities relevance of our research. Our cancer center director, leaders and faculty participate in our quarterly COE Community Advisory Board meetings to foster partnership with bidirectional communication with City of Hope comprehensive cancer center leaders directly listening and responding to the community needs and voices.
Multiethnic Community Advisory Board (CAB)
Our 20 CAB members are selected from community health leaders who represent key health sectors (community hospitals and clinics, ethnic focused health advocacy groups, cancer focused advocacy groups, health professional organizations and faith-based organizations) that span the Catchment Area. Our CAB is co-chaired by S. Rarang (Filipino American Nurses Association) and Pastor J. Mc Call (Bethel Missionary Baptist Church).
The COE team facilitates community-scientist-clinician collaborations for community engagement in cancer prevention and City of Hope comprehensive cancer center research. COE’s work is informed by population-level data and our community health needs assessments, and guidance from our CAB representing the four counties of our Catchment Area and City of Hope comprehensive cancer center director and leaders.
Increasing Screening in Our Community
Reducing Cancer Burden and Disparities (2017-21)
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- 280 community partners
- 500+ community in-person and virtual education events
- 7,200+ colorectal cancer screenings
- 550 community leaders trained for capacity building
- 105 trained community research navigators
- 35,000+ households reached
Education, Prevention and Screening
Community Capacity Building
Community Impact: Training
- Cancer prevention and control (N=400+)
- Research capacity building (N=50)
- Community research navigator training (N=105)
- Advocacy and policy efforts (N=85)
Additional Funding:
- PCORI-16201-COH
- CHE Supplement
Community Impact: Funding
- With City of Hope support, 60 community organization received awards to conduct community health improvement projects addressing SDH and cancer disparities
- In partnership with City of Hope comprehensive cancer center researchers, 28 community partners engaged in research and received awards
Measuring the Burden of Cancer In Our Community
Presentations by Disease State
Organizations that provide reports and statistics on the health of our communities
- City of Hope community benefit
- American Cancer Society Cancer Facts & Figures 2022
- LA County Department of Public Health
Addressing the Burden of Cancer In Our Community
Build capacity for community driven cancer prevention and control
An important priority for our cancer center and COE is to address Catchment Area cancer burden by preparing and activating community advocates to participate in research as community-based/citizen scientists. Therefore, COE team trains community partners in research, mining data, conducting literature reviews, conducting needs assessments, developing research abstracts and posters, and implementing evidence-based programs.
Efforts to reduce cancer in the community
The COE team implements free community cancer screenings to reduce the burden of cancer including NCI’s Screen to Save for colorectal cancer. The Community-based Prostate Cancer Screening Program works with COE to leverage community partnerships to provide free prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood tests. Since 2017, the program has provided PSA blood tests to over 1,000 men to detect disease at an early and curable stage. Between 2017 and 2019, the COE team provided 1218 mammograms focused primarily on LA County, many completed through mobile mammogram units in partnership with health and faith-based organizations and community centers. We are improving clinical care system level strategies supporting cervical cancer screening and HPV vaccination.
Activities to address cancer health disparities
COE addresses cancer health disparities by targeting hard-to reach populations, traditionally excluded racial/ethnic groups, and medically underserved communities. Shades of Cancer Survivorship is a community partnership with Charles Drew University, Witness to Fitness, and COH-COE. We trained 48 navigators to serve Black and Latino communities to address cancer disparities by increasing access to care and survivorship resources targeting survivors and caregivers. COE team is also working to increase the HPV vaccination rate in Latino and Sexual and Gender minorities. The “Protegete y Vacunate!” program implements the Promotora Model.
Research In Action
Enhancing City of Hope’s capacity to address the needs of our community
COE emphasizes that COH research aligns with catchment area cancer burden and disparities.
Educational Materials
Breast Cancer
Colorectal Cancer
Prostate Cancer
Studies
Blood Cancer
Tobacco Control
Influencing Health Policy
California’s Comprehensive Cancer Control Plan, 2021–2025 (the state cancer plan) is a blueprint to reduce the cancer burden in the state. It is designed to provide guidance to individuals and organizations spanning health and social disciplines that have a role in impacting cancer control. Dr. Sora Park Tanjasiri, Associate Director, Cancer Health Equity and Community Engagement at the CFCCC, served on the executive committee that created this plan.
Contact us
Kimlin Tam Ashing, Ph.D.
Associate Director for Community Outreach and Engagement, Comprehensive Cancer Center
Founding Director, Center of Community Alliance for Research & Education
Deputy Director, Division of Health Equities
[email protected]
Sophia Yeung, M.H.A., CTTS
Administrative Coordinator
Smoking Cessation Program and Lung Cancer Screening Program
[email protected]