Abstract
Kentucky ranks first in the nation in cancer incidence and mortality rates, with the greatest burden of disease being in the Appalachian region. The cancer disparities in the Appalachian region of the state are tied to high poverty rates, low education attainment, low health care access, and high rates of poor health behaviors, such as tobacco use. The University of Kentucky (UK) Markey Cancer Center (MCC) developed the Appalachian Career Training in Oncology (ACTION) program to address the cancer and education disparities in the region. ACTION is a two-year program that focuses on cancer education and training for high school and undergraduate students from Appalachian Kentucky and features a variety of cancer-focused training activities, including faculty-mentored cancer research, clinical shadowing opportunities, cancer education activities, career development support, and community outreach projects. ACTION has been funded by the National Cancer Institute as a Youth Enjoy Science R25 research education program since 2018. The qualitative study herein used a semi-structured interview approach to identify participants’ perceptions of the program including the influential aspects that have helped students pursue their desired academic career paths. Ten ACTION alumni were chosen to participate in the study, including students currently in medical school, graduate school, physician assistant school, and pharmacy school. Thematic analysis generated five themes: motivation for participation, career development, mentorship and future opportunities, knowledge gained, and program improvements. Overall, this study demonstrates that the ACTION program is having a significant impact on students’ career preparation.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 1853-1860 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | Journal of Cancer Education |
Volume | 38 |
Issue number | 6 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Dec 2023 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2023, The Author(s) under exclusive licence to American Association for Cancer Education.
Funding
This study was supported by the University of Kentucky’s Appalachian Career Training in Oncology (ACTION) Program [NCI R25 CA221765] and the Markey Cancer Center’s Cancer Center Support Grant [NCI P30 CA177558]. The authors thank the Markey Cancer Center’s Research Communications Office for providing editorial assistance in the preparation of this manuscript.
Funders | Funder number |
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University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center’s Cancer Center Support Grant National Cancer Institute | P30 CA177558 |
National Childhood Cancer Registry – National Cancer Institute | R25 CA221765 |
National Childhood Cancer Registry – National Cancer Institute | |
University of Kentucky | |
University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center |
Keywords
- Appalachian Kentucky
- Cancer research
- Career development
- Research education program
- Workforce development
- Youth enjoy science
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Oncology
- Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health