A prestigious award of more than $850,000 from the National Cancer Institute will support Rahma Mkuu, PhD, as she builds her expertise in implementation science over the next five years while addressing cervical cancer screening disparities among women living with chronic conditions. Mkuu is an assistant professor and chronic disease researcher in the Department of Health Outcomes & Biomedical Informatics within the University of Florida’s College of Medicine.
The funding, known as a “K01” Mentored Research Scientist Career Development Award, is highly competitive for early career researchers seeking to gain intensive mentored career development experience. Mkuu will receive mentoring in implementation science while conducting the PINPOINT intervention, a randomized controlled study which stands for Preventing Cervical Cancer Through HPV Self-Collection And Patient Navigation.
“I am very excited and grateful for this opportunity. I am so thankful to my current mentors and everyone who supported me throughout the years,” Mkuu said.
The PINPOINT project targets women with type 2 diabetes, obesity, and social vulnerability because they are much more likely to die from cervical cancer than other women. To clarify these risks, Mkuu will be analyzing data from the extensive OneFlorida+ Clinical Research Network.
With the K01 funding, Mkuu receives protected time to study and advance her career. Mentoring will be provided by William “Troy” Donahoo, MD, FTOS, Chief of the UF Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, and by several senior faculty in HOBI: Keith Muller, PhD, Professor; Ramzi Salloum, PhD, Professor and Director of the Division of Implementation Science and Health Interventions; Elizabeth Shenkman, PhD, Chair of HOBI and Associate Director for Community Outreach and Engagement for the UF Health Cancer Center; and her primary mentor, Stephanie Staras, MSPH, PhD, Professor and Associate Chair for Faculty Development.
Recently, Mkuu was interviewed by TV 47 in her native country of Kenya, where she supported a cancer implementation science symposium co-hosted by the UF Health Cancer Center. She joined HOBI in 2023 as an assistant professor. She earned her Bachelors in Health Education at the University of Florida, a Master of Public Health from Columbia University, and a PhD in Health Education from Texas A&M University.
Two other HOBI faculty members with current K01 Mentored Research Scientist Career Development Awards are Dominick Lemas, PhD, studying pediatric obesity, and Christopher Kaufmann, PhD, investigating Alzheimer’s disease.