About Us

About TRAC:

TRAC develops and strengthens relationships and partnerships between the community our clients and collaborators and those seeking to advance research to benefit patients.

We provide strategic guidance and program development for non profit organizations, academic and community based research and clinical programs, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and healthcare companies.

In addition to our national and regional efforts, TRAC is involved in a number of global initiatives:

PUBLIC SERVICE INTERACTIONS AND INITIATIVES

Croatia - Member of US-Croatian Oncology Task Force

Japan - Assist cancer advocacy efforts and training of advocates

Korea - National biospecimen banking, cancer information services, and overall advocacy efforts

Ireland - National biospecimen banking program and advocacy efforts

Our Team:

PAULA KIM

Paula Kim is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Translating Research Across Communities (TRAC), and Principal of Paula Kim Consulting, and has more than 28 years of executive and entrepreneurial experience in business and not-for-profit ventures.

Paula is recognized on the grassroots, national, and international levels for her consumer-focused leadership and innovation in healthcare and advocacy strategies. She is often sought out for her ability to bridge the gap between the biomedical research and healthcare communities and those with whom they must collaborate to improve care and accelerate the progress of research.

TRAC is a leader in the development of cross-sector strategies and initiatives aimed at strengthening patient centered research and care.

TRAC/Paula Kim Consulting was established to meet the expanding communication, awareness, outreach and strategic needs of companies and organizations focused on advancing biomedical research to benefit patients.

Some of Paula's research and patient focused activities in the United States include the Virtual Tissue Bank for Mesothelioma and pursuing the development of Virtual Banks for other diseases such as pancreas, prostate, and breast cancers. She held leadership positions on the committees that developed the National Biospecimen Network Blueprint and C-Change Clinical Trials Guidance Documents. She developed the concept and spearheaded the development of the Pancreatic Cancer Research Map www.cancermap.org

Prior to her work in healthcare, Paula focused on raising her family and established herself as a General Contractor and Real Estate Developer in Southern California. Her commitment to advocacy and advancing research came from personal reasons – her dad’s pancreatic cancer diagnosis in 1998 and untimely death only seventy-five days later.

Despite no prior experience in national advocacy, patient programs, or public policy, she jumped headfirst into a major transition from building homes for people to leading volunteers and building hope and programs for patients and researchers. In 1999, Paula co-founded the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PanCAN), the first national patient advocacy organization for pancreatic cancer; and served as Founding Chairman of the Board, then Chief Executive Officer and President of the organization through 2004. In 2004, she resigned from the organization and moved forward to establish TRAC and Paula Kim Consulting.

Paula Kim’s team-building style led PanCAN’s growth from a handful of online chat volunteers into a national resource for the pancreatic cancer research and patient communities, with pioneering programs for clinical trials matching, patient services, grassroots development, research mapping, and career development research grant funding. She also led PanCAN’s policy efforts, which have yielded an unprecedented increase of over 350% in federal government investments in pancreatic cancer research.

In addition to her professional work, Paula Kim maintains longstanding commitments to pro bono and volunteer service to the National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, and the Food and Drug Administration, as well as with many patients, researchers, academic institutions, and organizations around the world.

SELECTED CURRENT AND PAST COMMUNITY SERVICE & APPOINTMENTS

National Cancer Institute

- Biospecimen Coordinating Committee

- Board of Scientific Advisors

- GI Clinical Trials Steering Committee/Pancreas Task Force

- Patient Advocacy Steering Committee

- Directors Consumer Liaison Group Advocacy Research Working Group

- Cancer Bioinformatics Grid-CaBIG

- American College of Radiology Imaging Network

- Food and Drug Administration- Patient Consultant

External Advisory Board Member for Research Programs & Executive Leadership

- Harvard/Dana Farber

- H. Lee Moffitt Comprehensive Cancer Center

- Mayo Clinic

- National Comprehensive Cancer Network

- Northwestern Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center

- TGen-University of Arizona

- University of California Cancer Centers

- University of Nebraska Eppley Comprehensive Cancer Center

- University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute

- University of Texas MD Anderson

Board of Directors - Executive Board

- C-Change/National Dialogue on Cancer

- Friends of Cancer Research

- National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers

- National Coalition for Cancer Research

- National Pancreas Foundation

HONORS & AWARDS

2004 American Society for Clinical Oncology Partners in Progress Award

2004 American Association for Cancer Research Public Service Award

2006 Society of Surgical Oncology James Ewing Award

2006 National Institutes of Health Group Merit Award for Work in Biorepositories

2007 Hope Funds for Cancer Research Award for Advocacy

ERIN MILLIKEN, PhD

Erin earned her PhD in Pharmacology from Case Western Reserve University, where she studied the hormonal basis of breast cancer using transgenic mouse models. Upon completion of her dissertation, Erin was awarded a National Cancer Institute Health Communications Internship. While at the NCI, she worked with the President’s Cancer Panel, a Presidential advisory board charged with monitoring the National Cancer Program. Erin has also served as a science writer for a number of NCI Centers and initiatives, including the Center for Cancer Research, the Center to Reduce Cancer Health Disparities, and the Translational Research Working Group.

Her desire to enhance communication amongst stakeholders in cancer research from varied backgrounds and knowledge, along with a personal interest in helping others led Erin to join Paula Kim and TRAC in 2006.

In her role as a Research Project Specialist, Erin brings the best of all worlds as she combines her leadership capability with her strengths in science, communication, and writing. As senior staff, she interfaces with researchers, community members, advocates, and others to facilitate productive interactions that will ultimately lead to advancements in science that will benefit patients.

In her spare time, Erin enjoys reading about early American history, fixing up her “new” house, and playing soccer.

PATTI DIAZ

Patti credits her homeschooling education for nurturing her joy of learning and also developing in her the character qualities of responsibility and self-discipline. Homeschooling, with its flexible schedule and fundamental objective of bringing education to practical life experience, has provided Patti with many outlets she would not otherwise have had. It was through a high school volleyball team that Patti first connected with a local non-profit charity and had the opportunity to discover her love of numbers in a bookkeeping job. Patti has traveled to China on two separate occasions to participate in an orphan ministry with the same non-profit charity. It was also homeschooling that allowed her to graduate high school in the spring of 2008 one year ahead of her class and transition smoothly into the working world beginning her job with TRAC in June 2008. In her job with TRAC, Patti enjoys being part of a dynamic team of individuals that effectively manages to work together for a common purpose despite geographical separation. In the future, Patti hopes to combine her love of writing and of numbers into a job perhaps in the field of forensic accounting.

MATT HOLLIS

Matt joined TRAC after he was introduced to the non-profit sector by his first job - a position with the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. He recently graduated from the University of California, Irvine with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and was happy to return to non-profit work. Matt’s responsibilities with TRAC are primarily focused on areas concerning pancreatic cancer and melanoma.

JENNIFER SMITH, MSW

Resulting from her longstanding interests in cancer research, advocacy, and patient care, Jennifer recently joined the TRAC team to assist Paula with various projects and programs. Jennifer brings with her a passion to improve the lives of those affected by cancer and a rich background in the cancer field. Previous to joining TRAC, she served as the local site Project Manager for the NCI Community Cancer Centers Program (NCCCP) at St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis. The NCCCP pilot has an overarching goal of bringing more Americans into a system of high-quality cancer care. Additionally, Jennifer had a fantastic time in Bethesda, MD working for the National Cancer Institute’s Office of Advocacy Affairs first as a Health Communications Intern and was later promoted to serve on staff as the NCI Listens & Learns Program Coordinator. Jennifer earned her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and in Spanish from Miami University in Oxford, OH, as well as her Master of Social Work from The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. She enjoys spending time with her husband, Luke, trying to improve her golf game, and playing with her little niece and nephews.

This page was last modified on 2008-12-03