Abstract A050: Molecular testing for minority patients with or at high risk for cancer
Authors: Singh Rajbir , Al-Bayan Maliyah A. , Kadari Saritha , Nganteh Marldine Nl , Jackson Marche J. , Woodson Lanique M. , Shamsuddin Abdullah S. , Lemus Brenda Y. , Pratap Siddharth , Adunyah Samuel E. , Lammers Philip E. 
Published: August 2020

Purpose: Meharry Medical College is a participant in eMERGE (Electronic Medical Records and Genomics), a multicenter network sponsored by NHGRI/NIMHD with the primary goal to develop, disseminate, and apply approaches to research that combines biorepositories with electronic medical records (EMR) for genomic discovery and medicine implementation research. The consortium also focuses on ethical issues involving privacy, confidentiality, and interaction with the broader community. Individual institutions created protocols around research questions individualized to their populations.

Methods: We enrolled 500 African Americans with or at high risk for the four most common cancers (prostate, colorectal, breast, lung) to examine possible genetic and proteomic differences to account for health disparities in this population. We will perform DNA, RNA, and proteomics analyses pertinent to these cancers and obtain corresponding clinical history from the EMR with planned long-term follow-up.

Results: 500 subjects (211 female) were enrolled over 11 months from Nashville General Hospital, including the following cancer/at-risk participants: breast 59/37; colorectal 17/128; prostate 31/136; lung 16/76. Most individuals stated that they participated for potential benefit to themselves, family members, or humankind and only 11% of potential participants declined. Little concern has been voiced for providing samples for genetic analysis. A genetic counselor will meet with the participants who are found to have pathogenic or likely pathogenic mutations, while study investigators will share results with those that are not found to have mutations. Participants will be queried regarding understanding of the genetic testing results and followed for one year to evaluate if they underwent recommended testing and to follow for cancer outcomes.

Conclusion: The inclusion of diverse groups in genomic research is critical to identify possible reasons for health disparities and to study the understanding of genetic testing and ethical issues surrounding this topic. In this study, African-Americans are participating willingly in clinical research to examine possible genetic and/or social bases for cancer disparities.

Acknowledgment: NIMHD (U54MD007593) to the Meharry Translational Research Center (MeTRC); National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI); National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID).

Citation Format: Rajbir Singh, Maliyah A. Al-Bayan, Saritha Kadari, Marldine Nl Nganteh, Marche J. Jackson, Lanique M. Woodson, Abdullah S. Shamsuddin, Brenda Y. Lemus, Siddharth Pratap, Samuel E. Adunyah, Philip E. Lammers. Molecular testing for minority patients with or at high risk for cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Eleventh AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2018 Nov 2-5; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2020;29(6 Suppl):Abstract nr A050.