AACI Presidential Initiative

AACI distinguishes itself among professional cancer organizations through its ongoing engagement with academic cancer centers. The AACI Presidential Initiative allows the president of AACI's Board of Directors to formalize a special project of broad interest and value to AACI members during their two-year term. Several of AACI's signature programs began as presidential initiatives.

Individuals residing in rural and frontier areas experience higher rates of cancer morbidity and
mortality compared to those who live in urban locations. A primary driver of these poor cancer
outcomes is limited access at key stages across the cancer care continuum, from prevention and
risk reduction strategies to clinical trial participation and treatment. Barriers to accessing health
services in rural areas include lack of transportation, fewer health care facilities, and insufficient
insurance coverage. 

AACI President Joann B. Sweasy, PhD, aims to confront the urgent crisis in rural cancer health in the United States with the Rural Cancer Health Initiative.

Read more in the November 2025 AACI Commentary.

Chair: Joann B. Sweasy, PhD
Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center

Dr. Joann B. Sweasy is the director of the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center and of the Eppley Institute for Research in Cancer and Allied Diseases. An internationally recognized expert in the genetics, cell biology, and biochemistry of DNA repair, Dr. Sweasy is deeply committed to engaging rural and other underserved communities.
 

Steering Committee Members

Matthew Anderson, MD, PhD
Tampa General Hospital Cancer Institute

Nadine J. Barrett, PhD, MA, MS
Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Comprehensive Cancer Center

Chyke A. Doubeni, MD, MPH
The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center - James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute

Hannah Hazard-Jenkins, MD
WVU Cancer Institute

Randall F. Holcombe, MD, MBA
The University of Vermont Cancer Center

Amy Leader, DrPH, MPH
Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Jefferson

Chris McNair, PhD
Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Jefferson

Joni Nelson, PhD
Hollings Cancer Center, Medical University of South Carolina

Jennifer W. Pegher, MA, MBA
Association of American Cancer Institutes

Yolanda Sanchez, PhD
University of New Mexico Comprehensive Cancer Center

Naoto Tada Ueno, MD, PhD, FACP
University of Hawai'i Cancer Center, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa

Cornelia Ulrich, MS, PhD
Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah

Stephanie Wheeler, PhD, MPH
UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill