Current projects (2021-2026)

Our project seeks to perform a randomized trial to examine the effect of 16-week supervised and unsupervised exercise interventions in sedentary, overweight, or obese Hispanic and Black cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy for the treatment of breast, colorectal, and prostate cancer. Despite the beneficial effect of exercise training for cancer patients, rates of participation in clinical cancer trials are low among disadvantaged and racial/ethnic minority groups, possibly due to greater barriers and less access to exercise training. Therefore, the need for novel accessible and cost- effective home-based exercise intervention aimed at the Hispanic and Black communities to better understand physical activity interventions is crucial. 

Public health relevance
Profound disparities exist in comorbid disease risk and lifestyle behaviors during and following chemotherapy in Hispanic and Black cancer patients, compared with European American counterparts. This includes declines in cardiorespiratory fitness paired with cardiotoxic effects, placing minority cancer patients at a higher risk for cardiovascular disease.  

Our project seeks to test if differences in androgen receptor (AR) signaling contribute to the biological differences between prostate cancer (PCa) in men with African ancestry (AA) versus men with European ancestry (EA), and that PCa in AA men may have distinct AR-dependencies and be vulnerable to therapies that combine AR-targeted therapies with other targeted agents. 

Public health relevance
Prostate cancer (PCa) is the second leading cause of cancer-related death in American men. Although men with European ancestry (EA) still represent the largest population of PCa patients, men with African ancestry (AA) are disproportionately affected by PCa with higher prevalence and worse outcomes. 

In this 2-step project, we will first survey individuals who did not quit smoking following a smoking cessation intervention offered in the context of lung cancer screening about their knowledge of electronic cigarettes (ECs), perceptions of ECs’ benefits and risks, and willingness to use ECs as a substitute for combustible cigarettes (CC). We will then conduct a pilot single-arm clinical trial using mixed methods to test the feasibility, acceptability, and the short-term effects of switching these individuals to use ECs instead of CCs.

Public health relevance
This project aims to reduce the tobacco-related health risks of people who smoke, are scheduled for lung cancer screening and have been unable to quit smoking despite receiving a course of evidence-based smoking cessation treatment consisting of counseling support and free nicotine replacement products. Electronic cigarettes expose a person to far fewer of the harmful cancer-causing chemicals found in conventional cigarettes that burn tobacco. Our project will provide key new information about the acceptability and effects of trying electronic cigarettes as a harm reduction strategy for these individuals.