Dr. Raymond Osarogiagbon, chief scientist for Baptist Memorial Health Care and director of the Multidisciplinary Thoracic Oncology Program and the Thoracic Oncology Research Group for Baptist Cancer Center, recently became the first executive officer for community site engagement with SWOG Cancer Research Network.
This new role will help increase clinician engagement with SWOG and SWOG trials at community practice sites, as well as ensure community-based investigators can participate in all stages of study development and execution. Most people treated for cancer in the United States are seen in community-based sites and enrolled by community practice providers.
“I am thrilled to take on this inaugural role with SWOG to advance cancer care and help save cancer patients’ lives,” said Osarogiagbon. “We know clinical trials and research save lives, which is why they are integral to treatment provided at Baptist Cancer Center. Community site engagement will become even more critical as SWOG evolves to expand remote care and conduct more decentralized trials.”
Osarogiagbon is a globally recognized lung cancer specialist who spearheads Baptist Cancer Center’s Mid-South Miracle initiative, a multifaceted program comprising seven components to help reduce lung cancer deaths in the Mid-South by at least 25% by 2030. A community oncologist, Osarogiagbon serves as principal investigator for the Baptist Memorial Health Care/Mid-South Minority Underserved National Community Oncology Research Program (NCORP) and is past chair of the Hope Foundation for Cancer Research.
He was named to the National Cancer Institute’s Board of Scientific Advisors, and his work has been published in numerous journals, including JAMA, the Journal of Clinical Oncology and the Journal of Thoracic Oncology. As a member of the SWOG lung and cancer care delivery committees, he has served as a leader of the SWOG NCORP site principal investigator sessions at group meetings.
SWOG Cancer Research Network is a global cancer research community that designs and conducts publicly funded clinical trials. SWOG was formed in 1956 and has saved more than 3 million years of life by testing new treatments, new prevention strategies and new ways to care for those who survive cancer.
