Around the Commonwealth Project LIFE! Puts Faith in Churches to Influence Healthy Behavior
I
The Community Memorial Healthcenter (CMH) oncology team, led by Tzann Fang, MD
Massey Opens Clinical Trials in South Hill
T
hree Massey clinical trials are now open and enrolling patients at Community Memorial Healthcenter (CMH) in South Hill, Virginia, where Massey began providing medical oncology care in the summer of 2012. The partnership between Massey and CMH allows therapeutic trials to be offered through Massey to patients in the Southern Virginia region. Trials will focus on breast, colon and lung cancer after a needs assessment conducted by Massey deemed those cancer types the most prevalent in the region. Led by Massey physician Tzann Fang, MD, and CMH research nurse, Donna Robertson, RN, OCN, the research team enrolled their first patient in a trial at the end of March. The trial compares different treatment options for breast cancer, and is the first trial led by a Massey physician at a partner institution. “This offers patients the convenience of staying in their home town instead of traveling to Richmond for access to a clinical trial,” says Marjorie Halverson, RN, OCN, clinical protocol activation manager at Massey, who has worked closely with the team in South Hill. The Massey clinical, regulatory, administration and affiliate research teams provided several comprehensive training sessions for the CMH staff leading up to the opening of the three clinical trials. These Massey research teams continued this collaboration over many months in order to implement all of the necessary steps to open these clinical trials at the South Hill location. Partnering with Massey’s collaborative effort at CMH are Mary Hardin, RN, MSN, OCN, CMH Cancer & Specialty Care director; Donna Robertson, RN, OCN, lead research nurse; Julie Hamby, RN, BSN, OCN, and Teresa Collins, RN, research nurses. “Working with Massey to bring our patients access to these cutting-edge treatments is extremely gratifying,” says Robertson. “We’re committed to excellence in care and partnering with Massey underscores that commitment.” “Clinical trials provide state-of-the-art care to patients and also allow the development of new therapies,” says Halverson. “The opening of these clinical trials in South Hill marks another way in which Massey is spreading our research to different areas of the Commonwealth and engaging more patients in trials while providing the high level of care and expertise for which Massey is known.”
14 • Advance
n early 2013, the American Cancer Society released a report revealing that cancer death rates are significantly higher among African Americans than Caucasians. Decreasing this disparity was one of the objectives behind Project LIFE! (Lord, Intimate relationships, Fitness and Early detection), which utilizes the power and influence of the African-American church to address this major health concern. “Our goal is to evaluate the impact on the behaviors of congregants when their church adopts a ‘health and wholeness’ pledge to practice and promote healthy behaviors,” said project lead and VCU Massey Cancer Prevention and Control researcher Maghboeba Mosavel, MA, PhD. “The expected outcome is that there will be an increased knowledge of cancer screening resources; increase in screening; and more integration of healthy practices within the church.” Project LIFE! is currently active in three churches in Danville and Pittsylvania, Virginia. Eleven congregants were trained to serve as LIFE! coaches to spread health promotion messages and host tailored activities aimed at increasing healthy behaviors and promoting early detection for cancer.
Maghboeba Mosavel, MA, PhD