Cancer Control and Population Sciences

Program co-Leaders: Cindy Blair, MPH, PhD, and Shugang Leng, MBBS, PhD

Cancer Control and Population Sciences (CCPS) is a transdisciplinary research program that connects cancer control and population/community research within the University of New Mexico Comprehensive Cancer Center (UNMCCC) and its catchment area, the State of New Mexico.

The CCPS program drives impactful, community-centered research that bridges environmental and behavioral risk factors, as well as systemic challenges, with multi-omics and interventional approaches, aiming to improve cancer outcomes and address unequal burdens among New Mexico’s distinctive and understudied populations.

The CCPS Research Program

Cancer Control and Population Sciences (CCPS) is a transdisciplinary research program that connects cancer control with community-engaged research at the UNMCCC to serve its unique catchment area. In collaboration with the UNMCCC Office of Community Outreach and Engagement (COE), CCPS’s goals are to conduct impactful research and disseminate interventions to reduce cancer risk, morbidity, mortality, and healthcare gaps among the populations it serves. CCPS aims are aligned with three central themes—healthcare gaps, interventions, and implementation science—providing a framework for addressing these needs.

  • Aim 1: Cancer Risk and Risk Prediction. CCPS aims to discover cancer risk factors and associated biomarkers and translate them to interventions to reduce cancer occurrence.
  • Aim 2: Cancer Screening. CCPS aims to define determinants of screening utilization and advance implementation of evidence-based cancer screening and risk-based clinical management.
  • Aim 3: Survival & Survivorship. CCPS aims to identify key treatment and behavioral factors related to cancer survivorship and to develop strategies to improve outcomes, patient well-being, and length of survival.

Aim 1: Discover cancer risk factors and associated biomarkers and translate them to interventions.

  • Environment–host interactions for lung aging and lung cancer
  • Environmental exposures and the legacy of hard rock mining
  • Cancer prevention in emerging adults in rural areas
  • Wildfire smoke and cancer outcomes
  • E-cigarette use and risk reduction
Aim 2: Define determinants of screening utilization and advance implementation of evidence-based cancer screening.
  • HPV immunization, cervical cancer screening, risk-based management of abnormal screening, cervical precancer diagnosis, and precancer and cancer incidence in NM and under-resourced settings
    • Age-specific impact of HPV immunization
    • HPV genotype-specific HPV immunization impact
    • Risk-based management
    • Cancer screenings in NM populations who are medically disadvantaged
    • Addressing gaps in cervical screening in the U.S.
    • Addressing gaps in cervical screening, globally
  • Solutions together: partnerships for improved cancer screening in American Indians

Aim 3: Identify key treatment and behavioral factors related to cancer survivorship and develop strategies to improve outcomes, patient well-being, and length of survival.

  • Promoting and optimizing participant engagement approaches in cancer genomic research
  • Melanoma and targeted therapy
  • Lifestyle interventions for adult cancer survivors
  • Improving survivorship in adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer survivors
  • Scalable and sustainable health promotion programs for cancer survivors

Since the prior renewal, funding has decreased due to the loss and retirement of senior investigators. With the addition of 16 recently recruited new members, we expect that CCPS funding will reach or exceed previous funding levels as these new members establish their research at UNM. CCPS maintains a robust NIH funding portfolio, focusing on catchment area environmental concerns and related health impacts, including cancer incidence and mortality. The discoveries made in CCPS over the last funding period resulted in 355 publications with an increase in the percentage of high impact publications.