Under the continued leadership of Drs. Colón-Carmona, Viswanath, Macoska, and Abel, the UMass Boston – Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center (DF/HCC) Partnership is committed to further developing a shared rigorous and collaborative transdisciplinary cancer and disparities-related research program. Our goal is to pursue Partnership activities and research that will bridge the divides in cancer disparities science, research education, and outreach through innovative research, training, and practice. The leadership is dedicated to elevating the Partnership to make an impact on society and educating those affected by cancer.

Goals

The primary goals of the Partnership are to:

  • Advance Partnership transdisciplinary cancer and cancer health disparities research programs reflecting the theme “bridging the divides”
  • Develop educational experiences for students and trainees from a diverse population typically underrepresented in biomedical careers
  • Promote hiring and retention of diverse scholars, particularly those from underrepresented populations, by leveraging institutional resources
  • Bridge research-community divides through innovative platforms: forming and engaging networks of community-based organizations to advance outreach, drawing on state of the science from dissemination and implementation sciences
  • Develop cutting-edge approaches to address data-absenteeism, the lack of representation of underserved groups in population-, community-, and genomics-based cancer and cancer disparities datasets and projects
  • Promote sustainability of partnership activities by reinforcing institutional support and grant matching with NIH-mechanisms and other sources of government, foundation, and philanthropic support

For more information on Partnership-funded projects and cores, please see our Research projects and Cores pages.

History of the partnership

Dr. Paul Fonteyn, former UMB Provost, Dr. Karen Emmons and Ms. Karen Burns White, senior leaders at DF/HCC, began discussing ways their respective institutions could formally collaborate.

Drs. Roderick Jensen (UMB) and Karen Emmons (DF/HCC) were awarded a $4.2M U56 grant from the NIH to establish the Partnership.

Dr. Adán Colón-Carmona (UMB) becomes the new UMB Contact PI.

The UMass Boston – DF/HCC Partnership was awarded a U54 grant totaling $13.2M. Drs. Colón-Carmona (UMB), Jill Macoska (UMB) and K. “Vish” Viswanath (DF/HCC) expanded the Partnership mission to include outreach.

The Partnership was renewed, receiving $17.8M in funding from NIH to continue their work on advancing cancer health equity until 2021.

Dr. Gregory Abel (DF/HCC) joined the Partnership leadership as the DF/HCC MPI.

The Partnership was renewed, receiving $16.5M in funding from NIH to continue their work on advancing cancer health equity until 2026.

About University of Massachusetts Boston (UMass Boston)

The University of Massachusetts Boston (UMass Boston) is nationally recognized as a model of excellence for urban public universities. Part of the UMass system, UMass Boston combines a small-college experience with the vast resources of a major research university. UMass Boston’s academic excellence is reflected by a student body of 15,989 undergraduate and graduate students.

Promoting educational opportunity is at the core of UMass Boston’s mission. UMass Boston has made a strategic commitment and substantial investments to expanding and strengthening its research and training enterprise.

About Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center (DF/HCC)

DF/HCC, a National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated comprehensive cancer center, was founded to integrate and build upon the collective talent and resources of the Harvard cancer research community. Five Boston academic medical institutions—Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston Children’s Hospital, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and Massachusetts General Hospital—and two Harvard Schools—the Harvard Medical School and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health—combined their scientific strengths to create a rich, collaborative environment that transcends institutional borders.

Today, more than 1,100 DF/HCC cancer researchers are working together in innovative clinical, translational, basic, and population-based research programs.

As one of the largest cancer research enterprises in the world, DF/HCC is committed to maximizing the impact of its research for cancer patients and ultimately realizing a world without cancer.

DF/HCC membership. Become a DF/HCC member and access additional programs and resources. Visit www.dfhcc.harvard.edu/membership to apply.