Grant Number:	3U19CA291430-02S1 Interpret this number
Primary Investigator:	Drake, Bettina
Organization:	Washington University
Project Title:	Aya Care: Enhancing Cancer Affordability and Fertility Preservation for Ayas in Long-Term Survivorship
Fiscal Year:	2025

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT This application will be submitted to PA-20-272 Administrative Supplements on Long-term Cancer Survivorship. This application advances and extends research in the parent grant, U19CA291430-5631, the signature multilevel intervention trial of the Washington University Advancing Cancer Control Engagement Research through Transformative Solutions (WashU-ACCERT) Center. The aim of the parent grant is to improve the quality of life for those diagnosed with cancer throughout treatment and into survivorship by addressing access to and affordability of cancer care and financial burden associated with cancer care costs. In direct response to community-identified concerns around access to care and affordability, in the parent grant, we are adapting a web-based tool to support cancer-related care costs, now called the CARE Tool (Cancer Affordability REsources), and pairing it with clinician and system training to support financial needs. This patient-focused tool is designed to provide education on health insurance, support people with cancer in making choices about health insurance, accessing resources to offset the financial burden of care, and building self-efficacy for discussing care costs with clinicians. Outcomes will be assessed at the patient, provider, and system levels. The proposed administrative supplement aims to enhance the CARE Tool by making it specifically relevant to survivors of adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer who are eligible for fertility preservation, not yet included in the larger tool since few if any AYAs were included in the original tool development. Moreover, among studies of fertility preservation procedures, few report specific costs, and none, to our knowledge, include both direct and indirect costs for pre- and post-pubertal procedures. For this administrative supplement, we propose characterizing the experience of direct costs, multiple out-of-pocket fees (e.g., up-front costs, storage fees) and indirect costs, including the unforeseen costs (e.g., time to complete fertility preservation) among survivors of AYA cancer to include relevant resources, messages, and content in the CARE Tool. To do this, we will estimate the quantitative costs of fertility preservation for survivors of AYA cancer diagnosed between ages 15-39 years (Aim 1); and, qualitatively characterize the burden of direct and indirect costs of fertility preservation and cancer care for AYA cancer survivors (Aim 2). These aims will yield quantitative cost estimates and qualitative descriptions of financial burden and needs to be used in the CARE Tool. Funds provided by this administrative supplement will further the public health impact for survivors of AYA cancer and will advance the impact of the parent grant, U19CA291430-5631.





None. See parent grant details.