Support for family caregivers of advanced cancer patients in underserved communities
Official title: Lay Coach-led Early Palliative Care for Underserved Advanced Cancer Caregivers
Funded at University of Alabama at Birmingham · NIH-10861003 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This study is all about helping family caregivers of people with advanced cancer, especially those from underserved communities, by providing them with support and resources to make their caregiving journey a little easier and less stressful.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R37 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Alabama at Birmingham NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Birmingham, United States) |
| Project start | July 10, 2020 |
| Project end | June 30, 2025 |
| Funding year | 2024 |
| Award (this year) | $445,512 |
| NIH project number | 5R37CA252868-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-10861003 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates for this research are family caregivers of advanced cancer patients, particularly those who are African-American or reside in rural areas of the Southern U.S.
✕Less likely to help
Patients who are not caregivers or those who do not belong to underserved populations may not receive benefit from this research.
What this research studies
This research focuses on providing support to family caregivers of individuals with advanced cancer, particularly those from underserved populations such as African-Americans and rural residents in the Southern U.S. The project aims to implement a lay navigator-led early palliative care intervention called ENABLE Cornerstone, which offers training and resources to caregivers who often lack access to formal support. By addressing the unique challenges faced by these caregivers, the intervention seeks to reduce their distress and improve their caregiving experience. The program is designed to be scalable and cost-effective, ensuring that more caregivers can benefit from it.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this research could significantly improve the well-being and support available to family caregivers of advanced cancer patients.
How similar studies have gone: Previous research has shown success with similar lay navigator-led interventions in improving caregiver support and outcomes.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Alabama at Birmingham
Birmingham, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Odom, James N. — University of Alabama at Birmingham
- Study coordinator: Odom, James N.
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Early palliative support by trained lay coaches for caregivers of people with advanced cancer
This program offers early palliative support from trained lay coaches to help under-resourced family and friend caregivers of people newly diagnosed with advanced cancer.
-
Helping Advanced Cancer Patients and Families Plan Ahead with a Resilience-Building Web Program
A web-based resilience program is being tested to help people with advanced cancer and their family caregivers have meaningful conversations and complete advance directives.
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Web program to help people with advanced cancer and their caregivers talk about future medical wishes
This project tries a web-based resilience program to help adults with advanced cancer and their family caregivers talk about future care and complete advance directives.
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Psycho-Spiritual Support for Patients with Advanced Cancer and Their Family Caregivers
A program tests a four-session, family-focused meditation delivered by video to help people with advanced cancer and their caregivers feel less depressive and spiritually distressed.
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Support-T: a mobile tool to help people with progressive pulmonary fibrosis and their caregivers get palliative care and planning
A mobile app called SUPPORT-T helps people with progressive pulmonary fibrosis and their caregivers access palliative care and plan for the future.
-
Caregivers and Patients Support for Advanced Cancer
A doctor-in-training is developing a telehealth five-session program to help patients with advanced cancer and their caregivers manage their psychosocial needs and quality of life.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.