Cancer Disparities

Center of Economic Excellence

Inception

2008

Award Amount

$3.6 million

Extramural Research Funding

$15 million

University Partner

Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC)
University of South Carolina
South Carolina State University

Private Sector Partner

AT&T Foundation

The Center is working to increase prostate cancer screening and early detection among African American men. The specific goals of the Center are to:

• Test methods of increasing African American participation in prostate cancer clinical
• Develop tools and techniques to increase early-detection screening of African American men for prostate cancer.
• Train students and junior faculty to conduct prostate cancer research in South Carolina.

A major problem faced by prostate cancer researchers in South Carolina is the lack of Participation among African Americans, despite the fact that prostate cancer mortality rates in South Carolina are three times greater for African Americans than for whites. According to the South Carolina Cancer Alliance, African Americans are significantly underrepresented in prostate cancer clinical trials. A common barrier to the development of new knowledge for medical problems affecting racially and ethnically diverse populations is the inability to enroll diverse patients in medical research.

The AT&T Foundation awarded $1 million to the MUSC Hollings Cancer Center to provide 500 African‐Americans in South Carolina with free prostate cancer screenings and to provide treatment advice and education to men who receive abnormal test results.
This Center builds on existing strengths of MUSC, USC, and South Carolina State University. MUSC has excellent basic science faculty and a strong program in cancer prevention and control, including an outstanding cancer disparities component. USC and South Carolina State have strong research emphases on health disparities.