A $1.5 million grant from the Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation will support the University of Illinois Cancer Center’s efforts to reduce cancer disparities in Chicago.
The three-year funding award will be used to develop population-specific cancer prevention and screening programs at community hospitals or health centers in three Chicago neighborhoods – Austin, Humboldt Park and South Shore. The programs will rely on community navigators to reach more than 600 people living in these high-need areas and work directly in those communities to help remove barriers to obtaining an early diagnosis, a key factor in long-term and lifetime cancer survival. Karriem Watson, DHSc, MS, MPH, associate director of Community Outreach and Engagement, will serve as principal investigator.