FBCF Awards Grant to UF Researchers for Breast Cancer Awareness Study

Florida Breast Cancer Foundation Awards UF Radiation Oncology Researchers Grant for Breast Cancer Awareness CampaignBeyond the human loss resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic has been an unfortunate increase in locally advanced cancers due to postponed or canceled screening appointments.

UF Radiation Oncology Associate Professor Julie Bradley, MD; Assistant Professor Eric Brooks, MD; Assistant Professor Oluwadamilola T. Oladeru (Lola), MD, MA, MBA; and Second Year Resident Matthew Culbert, MD have been awarded a $10,000 grant from the Florida Breast Cancer Foundation (FBCF) to determine whether educational sessions will improve knowledge and increase utilization of breast cancer screening resources for people with higher-than-average risk status for breast cancer development.

Entitled “BE AWARE: Breast Education to Advance Women’s Awareness of Risk and to Empower,” the grant will comprise virtual educational sessions with supplementary resources, including televised educational sessions focused on risk factors; a website that highlights risk status and screening recommendations; and a mobile app that enables personalized screening recommendations. All will incorporate both English and Spanish.

The educational campaign will be available via a two-week-long, 40-session package on local broadcast television. Using analytics gathered through broadcast viewership, website traffic, and app-based data collection, Dr. Bradley’s team will assess whether this approach is effective in increasing screening behavior.

The sessions will be collaboratively produced by a multidisciplinary UF team of radiation oncologists, nurse practitioners, nurse navigators, and radiation therapists. Diverse patients with varied ages, races/ethnicity, and education levels will be featured to ensure representation of all Floridians.

The supplementary website will incorporate all relevant disease site-specific clinical information, such as educational resources on each risk factor, with national guideline-based information and recommendations.

The user-friendly custom app will be based on the GAIL model for personalized breast cancer risk assessment, with additional logic derived from national cancer guidelines. It will allow users to input personal risk factor status and demographic information generating individualized screening recommendations.

The team hypothesizes that 5% of households will view content, and 1% will access supplementary resources, impacting 4,000 to 20,000 Florida residents.

For more information about the Florida Breast Cancer Foundation, visit floridabreastcancer.org.

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