JUNE 2001

Table of Contents

Arkansas Cancer Research Center

The Arkansas Cancer Research Center (ACRC) at UAMS was established in 1984 and now directs all cancer-related activities including patient care, clinical and basic science research, medical education and outreach activities. ACRC provides state-of-the-art cancer treatment to patients from Arkansas, the United States, and many foreign countries.

Arkansas physicians outside Pulaski County refer nearly 60 percent of ACRC patients. Arkansas residents receive the most advanced cancer treatment available anywhere in the world and do not have to leave the state for cancer care. Arkansas patients retain a greater degree of normalcy in their lives than those who might have to travel hundreds or thousands of miles for treatment.

ACRC devotes considerable attention to cancer awareness and education, particularly among under-served populations. During the past two years, ACRC has presented more than 100 cancer education programs to approximately 1,000 individuals throughout Arkansas.

The Witness Project

The Witness Project encourages African-American breast cancer survivors to serve as role models in providing culturally sensitive information about the importance of early detection in the fight against breast cancer. Currently, 156 African-American women representing 27 Arkansas counties are trained Witness volunteers. They reached more than 1,000 Arkansas women last year. Through the Witness Project, women, particularly in rural areas of the state, are becoming better informed about early breast cancer detection.

ACRC received a grant from the Center for Disease Control to help determine if the Witness Project's grass roots, peer leadership approach can be applied to other contexts and at-risk populations; rural white and Hispanic women, for example. The efficacy of testing the program in inner cities is being investigated.

Arkansas Special Populations Access Network

The ACRC was awarded funding from the National Cancer Institute to create the Arkansas Special Populations Access Network (A-SPAN). The goal of this program is to reduce the disparity in access to cancer information and treatment among minorities by enhancing relationships between identified communities and providers. African-Americans, Hispanics and rural Caucasians will be the priority populations.

The 15 counties of the project include regions in the Delta (Mississippi, St. Francis, Crittenden, Lee, Phillips, Desha, Chicot and Monroe counties), central Arkansas (Jefferson, Arkansas and Pulaski counties) and northwest Arkansas (Sebastian, Crawford, Washington and Benton counties).

Numerous community partners have joined ACRC in this endeavor, including the:

• Mid-South Division of the American Cancer Society

• Arkansas Department of Health

• Arkansas Prostate Foundation

• Arkansas affiliate of the Susan G. Komen Foundation

• Arkansas Bureau of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention

• Witness Project

• Arkansas Minority Health Commission

© 2001 University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Division of Institutional Advancement
4301 W. Markham St., Slot 716
Little Rock, AR 72205
501-686-5685

06/25/01