Did you know that Pelotonia has helped fund four statewide initiatives? These programs are aimed at early detection and prevention for different cancers.

The latest initiative that Pelotonia has invested in is Turning the Page on Breast Cancer in Ohio. In addition to Pelotonia support, Pfizer and the American Cancer Society are all investing in this program. Collaborators with the OSUCCC – James in this project include the Ohio Association of Community Health Centers, Susan G. Komen, and the North Central Region American Cancer Society.

Learn more about Turning the Page on Breast Cancer in the Q&A below:

The project will use a multi-level approach in 12 Ohio counties to provide breast cancer education and facilitate access to risk assessment, genetic counseling and testing, appropriate screening/surveillance, follow-up for abnormal tests, and prompt and proper treatment for Black women who are at greater risk of breast cancer mortality.

Electra Paskett, PhD, MSPH, Marion N. Rowley Chair in Cancer Research and co-leader of the OSUCCC – James Cancer Control Research Program, and Heather Hampel, MS, LGC, associate director of human genetics and member of the OSUCCC – James Molecular Carcinogenesis Research Program, serve as co-principal investigators.

Dr. Paskett specializes in finding ways to help others prevent or reduce the burden of cancer by designing intervention strategies that persuade people to change their behavior and take control of their health. Hampel is a genetic counselor who also leads the Ohio Colorectal Cancer Prevention Initiative (OCCPI), a Pelotonia-funded statewide initiative that screens newly diagnosed colorectal cancer patients and their biological relatives for Lynch syndrome.

This investment is another step toward reducing the burden of cancer through early detection. Women who learn they may be at increased risk for breast cancer after completing the program’s online assessment tool will be given suggestions for next steps in reducing their cancer risk.

The specific factor that makes this investment unique is that it seeks to reduce the mortality rate of Black women, who are 42% more likely to die from breast cancer than white women. This is most likely because Black women tend to be diagnosed at later stages of breast cancer, when their cancer is less treatable. Cancer screenings can ensure that if an individual has cancer that it will be caught early, while it is more treatable.

Participating counties in Ohio will include Franklin, Fairfield, Clark, Butler, Hamilton, Lake, Cuyahoga, Lorain, Trumbull, Summit, Stark and Mahoning. Several strategies (e.g., Facebook ads, referral from providers or community organizations) will be used to direct interested women to a website where they can place information about themselves, after which their risk for breast cancer will be assessed and they will receive a personal prescription for breast health.

This study will use geographic predictors (county) of aggressive disease to identify and target women who live in high-risk counties, train providers at Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) to facilitate breast health strategies and deliver personalized breast cancer prevention strategies to women based on their risk stratification, and help women adhere to these strategies via telephone patient navigation.