Cancer health disparities

In the face of declining revenue for research on tobacco-related diseases and the need to provide an evidence base for improving the lives of current and former tobacco-product users, TRDRP will now prioritize applications studying the causes and potential remedies for tobacco-related cancer health disparities over other tobacco-related cancer applications. As stated in the introduction and eligibility sections of this Call, letters of intent submitted for cancer research that meet the eligibility requirements but do not address health disparities may not be invited to full application.

Example Research Topics:

• Clinical and/or pre-clinical studies on the carcinogenic potential of tobacco products that are preferentially used by certain age groups or other tobacco priority populations.
• Implementation strategies aimed at improving evidence-based tobacco treatment, such as the utilization of biomarker evaluation, in cancer care settings that serve tobacco priority populations.
• Mechanistic insights informing prevention strategies in patients who engage in co-use of cannabis and tobacco during cancer treatment.
• The impact of menthol and/or non-menthol synthetic cooling agents (such as WS-3 and WS-23) on cellular processes such as proliferation, cell cycle checkpoint mechanisms, and senescence.
• Studies of epigenetic changes induced by tobacco product exposure (first-, second-, or thirdhand) combined with changes induces by chronic stress or other social determinants of health.