MERRILL, WI – Marshfield Clinic is actively recruiting in the Merrill area for participants to join the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Connect for Cancer Prevention Study (Connect).
NCI is part of the National Institutes of Health. Connect is designed to explore the causes of cancer and learn more about how to prevent it. Marshfield Clinic is one of several health care systems across the country participating in this cutting-edge research. Together, these health care systems and the NCI seek to recruit 200,000 eligible adults to participate in the study. As of June 1, Marshfield Clinic has enrolled more than 5,000 participants in Connect.
Marshfield Clinic is offering a special opportunity to patients in the Merrill area and will host upcoming Connect enrollment sessions 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on June 24-25 and July 30-31at Marshfield Clinic Merrill Center, 1205 O’Day St.
During enrollment sessions, patients can sign up for Connect and donate their first samples for the study. Current participants who haven’t yet donated samples for Connect are also welcome to stop by to do so. The team looks forward to meeting patients interested in learning more about the study and saying hello to current participants.
“Marshfield Clinic aims to recruit 11,000 patients who are between the ages of 30 and 70 and have no personal history of cancer to participate in this important study,” said Robert Greenlee, Ph.D., M.P.H., the Connect principal investigator and senior research scientist at Marshfield Clinic Research Institute. “The burden of cancer on our communities and families remains very high. Connect will create a platform of research for years to come that we expect will reduce this burden by uncovering ways to prevent cancer, detect it earlier when it’s more treatable, and improve the health of cancer survivors.”
Marshfield Clinic has seven regular centers for patients to join Connect and donate samples for the study in Marshfield, Lake Hallie, Weston, Wisconsin Rapids, Rice Lake, Stevens Point and Minocqua. Enrollment sessions at other Marshfield Clinic locations will be scheduled periodically.
Connect is a long-term scientific endeavor. It takes time to observe and understand the causes and natural history of cancer, so participants are asked to take part in Connect for many years. They will be asked to complete online health surveys a few times a year and to donate samples of blood, urine, and saliva every two to three years. Safeguards for privacy and confidentiality are in place to protect participants’ data and biological samples.
“Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the U.S. While much progress in treatments has been made, the number of people who will develop cancer is expected to rise in the next 10 years as the population ages and lifestyles and behaviors change,” said Stephen J. Chanock, M.D., Director of NCI’s Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics (DCEG). “Connect will identify novel and emerging exposures that may affect cancer risk and improve our ability to predict cancer. The goal of this study is to change the future of cancer prevention.”
Through Connect, researchers hope to identify factors that could affect cancer risk and other health outcomes. These findings have the potential to influence public health and cancer prevention guidance for years to come. Participants in Connect will be a part of a community of people from different backgrounds to ensure everyone can benefit from the discoveries and learn about cancer prevention along the way.
To learn more about Connect, visit cancer.gov/connectstudy.
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Marshfield Clinic Health System, now Marshfield Clinic region of Sanford Health, is an integrated health system whose mission is to enrich lives through accessible, affordable compassionate health care. The health system serves Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula with more than 1,400 providers comprising dozens of specialties, health plan, and research and education programs. Primary operations include more than 60 Marshfield Clinic locations, 11 hospitals, Marshfield Children’s Hospital, Marshfield Clinic Research Institute, Security Health Plan and Marshfield Clinic Health System Foundation.
Sanford Health, the largest rural health system in the United States, is dedicated to transforming the health care experience and providing access to world-class health care in America’s heartland. Headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, the organization has 53,000 employees and serves over 2 million patients and nearly 425,000 health plan members across the upper Midwest including South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota, Wyoming, Iowa, Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The integrated nonprofit health system includes a network of 56 hospitals, 288 clinic locations, 147 senior care communities, 4,000 physicians and advanced practice providers and nearly 1,500 active clinical trials and studies. The organization’s transformational virtual care initiative brings patients closer to care with access to 78 specialties. Learn more about Sanford Health’s commitment to shaping the future of rural health care across the lifespan at sanfordhealth.org or Sanford Health News.
