​Center supports a diverse cancer workforce by providing training and mentorship.

The ACS Center for Diversity in Cancer Research (DICR) Training held its inaugural Post-Baccalaureate Fellows annual meeting Sept. 11 - 12 in Atlanta, GA. The theme of the meeting was “Boldly Breaking Barriers: Achieving Success as a Cancer Researcher”. 

The attendees at the annual meeting included post-baccalaureate fellows, principal investigators, and program managers from 18 institutions across the country.

The meeting provided an opportunity for fellows to present their research and network with others. Fellows also participated in mock interviews and learned more about future career paths and professional development.

Dr. Rob Winn, director of the Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center and member of the ACS Board of Directors, gave the keynote address during the opening plenary session. He expressed the need to be as precise in our language as we are in our medicine. “We can’t become so smart that we forget the language of the community,” he said. “People, especially people of color, aren’t joining clinical trials because we’re explaining it to them in language that prevents them from understanding the intended outcomes.”

Large entities and organizations need to focus on building institutional trustworthiness as opposed to building trust just on the individual level. Communities of color need to know they can trust organizations and institutions, because once the “trusted person” is no longer there, where does that leave the institution?