Aloha – Hafa Adai – Malo e leiei – Talofa Lava – Yokwe – Welcome

Weaving an Islander Network for Cancer Awareness, Research, and Training (WINCART) was a 10-year Community Network Program (CNP) Center funded by the National Cancer Institute’s Center to Reduce Cancer Health Disparities (CRCHD). The WINCART Center was comprised of six community based organizations and researchers from three universities with the goal of reducing disparities in cancer incidence and mortality among Chamorro, Marshallese, Native Hawaiian, Samoan, Tongan, and other Pacific Islanders in Southern California. Based on the principles of community-based participatory research, the WINCART Center conducted research, training, implementation and evaluation of community education to promote beneficial biomedical and behavioral procedures. The WINCART Center partners included: California State University Fullerton, Claremont Graduate University, Guam Communications Network, Samoan National Nurses Association, Tongan Community Service Center/Special Service for Groups, Orange County Asian and Pacific Islander Community Alliance, Pacific Islander Health Partnership, Union of Pan Asian Communities, and the University of Southern California.

WINCART Center research foci included (1) tobacco cessation intervention research with late adolescent and young adult PIs in Southern California, (2) attitudes toward the collection of biospecimens among adults, and (3) culturally tailored health promotion regarding obesity and physical activity. We hope you enjoy reading about these and many more research activities and outcomes on this website, and hope you are motivated to continue WINCART’s work to promote healthy and empowered Pacific Islander communities!

— Paula Healani Palmer, PhD & Sora Park Tanjasiri, DrPH
WINCART Principal Investigators