Administrative and Engagement Core

Nigeria is at a crossroads in its cancer control response. On the one hand, the country remains an epicenter of a growing cancer crisis. On the other hand, there are existing guidelines (e.g., the National Cancer Control Plan2 by the Nigerian Ministry of Health, the Costing for Cervical Cancer Elimination in Nigeria by the World

Health Organization,3 a Society-wide guideline for cervical cancer elimination,4 and a recent National Strategic Framework on vaccines for cancer control).5 These have accelerated the tempo and created new opportunities to achieve the country's vision for reducing the incidence and mortality of cancer in Nigeria. As a result, to

support novel partnerships within and beyond traditional clinical services, including in community settings and non-health sector organizations, we propose the US-Nigerian Cancer Control Center for Research on Implementation Science and Equity (C3-RISE) Administration and Engagement Core (AEC). Our overarching

goal is to improve cancer control in Nigeria and exert a sustained impact on public health in partnership with key stakeholders. Our proposed U54 Center brings together a transdisciplinary research team to meaningfully collaborate with key stakeholders, including individuals, communities, and local and state ministries of health.

The U54 program will foster a Nigerian implementation science (IS) program to optimize the implementation of vaccines for cancer control efforts in Nigeria. The AEC will be responsible for the overall administration, coordination, and management of the Center and communication with the NIH. It will foster collaboration

between researchers and key stakeholders and provide critical infrastructure for equitable implementation of evidence-based vaccines (i.e. human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines for cervical cancer and hepatitis B (HepB) vaccines for liver cancer) for cancer control. We will also set a national and global standard for cutting-edge

participatory IS research approaches9 in a resource-constrained setting that accelerates the adoption, adaptation, and sustainability of effective cancer control interventions in Nigeria. Our specific aims are: 1) To coordinate project management of the center wide-activities using agile methods; 2) To serve as a community

engagement hub for IS in Nigeria using crowdsourcing methods; and 3) To evaluate Center's milestones and overall progress. By providing an infrastructure that facilitates Center-wide communications, operations, community outreach and evaluation, the AEC will serve as a central focal point to reinforce the overall vision of

reducing the incidence and mortality of cancer while advancing the role of IS for equitable cancer control in Nigeria.