Project Summary: In New Mexico, 15.2% of children between the ages of 6-15 are obese, ranking New Mexico 23rd among all U.S. states. Obesity prevalence also increases with age. In 2018, only 13% of New Mexico children ages 2-4 years were obese compared with 32% of adults 18 years of age and older. Likewise for Washington in 2016, 12% of children ages 2-4 years were obese compared to 29% of adults. To address the prevalence of obesity and related diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and several types of cancer, programs focusing on increasing opportunities for active living and healthy eating are necessary. Multi-component school-based obesity prevention programs have demonstrated increases in PA and improvement in dietary habits; however, most afterschool programs are short term; evidence is needed to confirm long-term effects. Moreover, programs that involve parents have shown to be more successful in helping children choose healthier behaviors. Therefore, the purpose of this proposal is to pilot test the Healthy Parents and Children Enhancement (H-PACE) program -- a community-engaged research project – through an existing after-school program in Las Cruces, NM and a new partnership in Sunnyside, WA among children 8-11 years of age (3rd- 5th grade).

Project Summary: Cancers are characterized by alterations to cellular metabolism that promote tumorigenesis, however our understanding of how these metabolic changes are enacted and how they mechanistically support cancer cell function remains lacking. While some metabolic changes reproducibly occur as a direct result of oncogenic mutations, other metabolic alterations occur over time through adaptive metabolic protein expression changes that allow cells to surmount metabolic deficiencies during cancer progression. Notably, this latter group is predicted to be enriched for functionally important metabolic changes, suggesting that their identification would have particularly relevance for cancer research. However, detailed understanding of which metabolic alterations are the result of adaptations is hampered by the lack of models for directly studying reproducible metabolic adaptations in cancer. Additionally, data on differences in cancer-related adaptations based on race or ethnicity that contribute to health disparities are lacking. Here, we propose to address this knowledge gap by investigating the mechanisms of metabolic adaptation system that we have recently established, where loss of function mutations in the tumor suppressor succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) selects for cells with concordant expression of components of mitochondrial electron transport chain complex I, which ultimately supports cell metabolism and cell proliferation.

Project Summary: It is well established that phytonutrient-rich foods are cancer preventive and that diets high in phytochemicals such as carotenoids, tocopherols, and chlorophylls are associated with decreased cancer risk and recurrence. Historically, traditional dietary patterns across multiple cultures have been plant-based and phytonutrient-rich. As dietary patterns have westernized, they have become less plant-based and thus less phytonutrient-rich. In parallel, communities that previously consumed plant-based diets have experienced increased risks of cancer and cardiometabolic disorders. The Hispanic/Latinx community in southern New Mexico has been particularly impacted by cancer health disparities making it imperative to develop effective and sustainable strategies to improve diet quality. This Full Project builds upon an ongoing collaboration between investigators at New Mexico State University (NMSU) and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center (Fred Hutch) to develop and implement a “kitchen-to-lab-to-table” research model. Here, we extend our research by partnering with the NMSU Cooperative Extension Service.

Project Summary: Smoking prevalence among sexual and gender minority (SGM) adults in New Mexico is more than twice as high as non-SGM adults, suggesting that existing SGM-related disparities in tobacco use will persist well into the foreseeable future unless sustained efforts are undertaken to address them. Helping young adult tobacco users to quit is a critical piece of SGM-directed tobacco control interventions, yet there have been few efforts to develop tailored treatments specifically for this population. This is a critical gap given that this is a population whose access to and use of traditional cessation treatments involving counseling and pharmacotherapy is poor. SGM young adults in New Mexico (NM) are likely to experience unique influences on tobacco use and cessation tied to both their ethnic and SGM identities, in addition to other aspects of their identity. An intersectional focus is critical for developing interventions to address high rates of tobacco use among SGM young adults in New Mexico that are acceptable, accessible, and effective. To address these needs, we have adapted an avatar-led, digital Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) program for SGM young adult smokers at all stages of readiness to quit. 

Project Summary: While cancer is a relatively heterogenous set of diseases, all cancers are characterized by significant alterations in cellular metabolism driven both by oncogenic mutations and the tumor microenvironment.Central to mapping cellular metabolism in both disease and non-diseased states is Stable Isotope Resolved Metabolomics (SIRM). While the analytical chemistry techniques and instruments utilized in SIRM experiments have undergone rapid technological advancement, statistical and inferential methodologies have lagged. This pilot project seeks to better understand cancer metabolism through SIRM data generation, development of better statistical methodology for analyzing such data, and creation of a user-friendly tool/interface for implementing these SIRM data/statistical analyses methods on future, independent projects.

Project Summary: It is well established that phytonutrient-rich foods are cancer preventive and that diets high in phytochemicals such as carotenoids, tocopherols, and chlorophylls are associated with decreased cancer risk and recurrence. Historically, traditional dietary patterns across multiple cultures have been plant-based and phytonutrient-rich. As dietary patterns have westernized, they have become less plant-based and thus less phytonutrient-rich. In a new collaboration with community groups in southern New Mexico and an interdisciplinary team of investigators at Fred Hutch and NMSU, the team seeks to advance the science by identifying specific culinary traditions and methods to improve the diet quality and absorption of phytonutrients in Hispanic/Latino communities living along the Mexican border.

Project Summary: The placenta is an unusual tissue that mediates communication between the mother and developing fetus. An optimal rate of cell proliferation is key for a successful pregnancy; reduced placental growth leads to poor embryo development and lower viability whereas uncontrolled proliferation leads to fetal abortion. Many aspects of placental biology relate to cancer; for example, choriocarcinoma is a fast-growing cancer of placental origin. This pilot will investigate dramatic variation in bat reproductive strategies including their unique and extensive reproductive pauses. The team seeks to uncover novel strategies bats employ to accomplish reproductive success despite these dramatic pauses during stages that have profound health consequences in humans.

Project Summary: Sexual and gender minorities (SGM) — people who identify with a sexual orientation other than straight/heterosexual or a gender identity different than their sex assigned at birth — have a higher prevalence of cigarette smoking than the non-SGM population, putting this marginalized population at higher risk of tobacco-related disease and death, including cancer. Similar to national-level data, SGM individuals in New Mexico as a whole have higher rates of tobacco use than non-SGM individuals: 16.9% of New Mexicans who identify as straight are current smokers compared to 20.6% who identify as gay or lesbian and 33.8% who identify as bisexual. Smoking cessation among SGM adults in New Mexico is a high-impact prevention behavior that could be addressed via a targeted intervention, aided by an understanding of individual, interpersonal, community/organizational, and societal factors contributing to tobacco use as well as tobacco cessation experiences and preferences in this population.

Project Summary: Cancer cachexia, a paraneoplastic syndrome, is characterized by unexplained weight loss accompanied with substantial muscle wasting resistant to conventional nutritional suppot, leading to impaired qualify of life and lower survival rate. Unfortunately, many therapeutic attempts to ameliorate muscle wasting in patients with advanced cancer cachexia are unlikely to produce meaningful clinical outcomes. Prevention, therefore, may be the most practical approach to combat cancer cachexia. Pre-clinical research reported potential benefits from exercise countermeasure (EC) to combat muscle wasting as well as reduce tumor burden. Branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) and other metabolic intermediates released from muscle breakdown may support the increased metabolic requirements of cancer cells, suggesting that prevention of cachexia may have anti-tumor effects. The potential benefit of restraining tumor growth prioritizes the need for identifying optimal EC strategies to prevent cancer cachexia. The important question of whether inhibition of tumor growth by exercise is associated with reductions in circulating amino acids or amino acid depletion in tumors has not been addressed. The overall objective of this study is to determine the clinical efficacy of different types of EC on cancer cachexia and tumor progresssion in ApcMin/+ mice.

Specific Aims: The Administrative Core functions as a strong link between the U54 Partnership MPIs and the project/core leaders.

The overarching goal of the Administrative Core is to maintain a seamless infrastructure that fosters the active exchange of information and support throughout the entire U54 Partnership. In addition, the Core links the U54 Partnership to external communities and stakeholders. The effective work of the core increases an understanding of cancer and cancer health disparities among our partners.

Specific Aims: The overall goal of the Planning and Evaluation Core is to monitor the progress of the U54 Partnership in meeting its goals and objectives.

This Core supports all five of the Partnership's goals. There are two committees (Internal Advisory Committee, IAC, and Program Steering Committee, PSC) and four advisory groups (three Community Advisory Boards (CABs) and a U54 Alumni Panel) within this Core which meet at least annually. These committees and groups review progress towards specific measurable outcomes of the projects and cores and provide feedback to the MPIs as well as the investigators.

Specific Aims: PACR is diversifying the community of scientists in cancer, cancer health, and biomedical research by supporting joint research education programs for students, postdocs, and faculty who are members of groups underrepresented (UR) in biomedical research. This partnership is able to achieve this goal because NMSU and Fred Hutch have established a strong collaborative research and educational program over 15 years funding, which has resulted in the maturation of a cancer research infrastructure at NMSU and a heightened knowledge of health disparities research at the Fred Hutch.

This core continues the progression of diversifying the community of scientist in cancer research through: implementing integrated biomedical research education programs, with an emphasis on cancer and/or health disparities research, across a spectrum of academic levels, and providing concurrent and on-going support for academic and professional goal attainment among program participants

Specific Aims: The border region of New Mexico (NM), the northwestern region of NM known as Indian Country, and the Yakima Valley of Washington State (WA) are three areas where disparities are severe among Hispanic and American Indian (AI) people. The Outreach Core leads PACR in collaborating with regional community organizations that work with the underserved in these areas. Further, this core works with the state-wide Cooperative Extension Services (CES) to engage in cancer prevention and control activities throughout New Mexico.

A major task of our Outreach Core is to increase community capacity in all three of the regions of underserved populations to participate in cancer awareness, prevention, and control, by continuing to implement evidence-based relevant cancer-related public health interventions in underserved communities.

For more information about the Outreach Core and what we offer to the community, click here.

Specific Aims: Thise core will have two areas of emphasis: individualized career support for ESIs and NIs, and Ombudsperson support for all Partnership participants. By providing individualized support for ESIs/NIs, the Core will directly address needs and knowledge gaps so that faculty can 1) increase their cancer research capability more effectively, 2) become more effective collaborators and 3) enhance their research on cancer biology or cancer health disparities.