Abstract

Dr. Kristie Foley has spent the past eight years building the capacity for tobacco research and control in Eastern Europe (R01TW007927-01, 2007-2012 and 1R01TW009280-01, 2012-2017). The purpose of the initiative is to build a network of well-trained LMIC scientists who conduct rigorous research on tobacco use, morbidity, and mortality with a high probability of translating research findings into practice and policy. Central and Eastern Europe has the highest cancer mortality rate of any region in the world, which is at least partially explained by high smoking rates. For example, between 33-36% of Hungarian adults smoked in 2007 when we launched our initiative. As a result, Hungary has held the unenviable position as a world leader in lung cancer mortality. The two consecutive R01 grants have sponsored sixteen research projects teams in Hungary and Romania. This talk will describe our capacity building approach, which includes formal training in research methodology and highly tailored mentoring to support rigorous tobacco research in primary prevention of tobacco use, cessation, and the reduction of secondhand smoke. Scientific, practical, and policy impacts of the initiative will be discussed.