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DHHS and Dartmouth update commission on Merrimack cancer feasibility study and data analysis
Summary
DHHS and Dartmouth teams reported progress on a multi‑part feasibility and pilot study of kidney cancer and other cancers in Merrimack: community engagement is complete, a UNH survey has been deployed, Dartmouth is finalizing pilot protocols and IRB plans, and VA cancer data are being incorporated into registry analyses.
Michelle Rovers, Bureau Chief for Public Health Protection at the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), updated the commission on Feb. 14 about the Dartmouth‑led Merrimack cancer investigation and the department’s parallel cancer data analysis work.
Rovers said the Dartmouth project has four components: community engagement studios (complete), cancer registry analysis, a UNH feasibility survey, and a pilot study. The Dartmouth team distributed a UNH survey to 8,500 members of the Granite State Panel in November 2024 with an oversample of Merrimack and eight surrounding towns; Dartmouth is finalizing edits to a report on that survey.
On cancer registry data, Rovers said DHHS supplied Dartmouth with additional VA‑sourced cancer cases (new kidney cancer cases from veterans) that DHHS expects to incorporate by mid‑to‑late February. Dartmouth’s analysis team (led by Dr. Salas) is harmonizing the additional VA cases through diagnosis year 2021 so the kidney analysis will be up to date and consistent with other analyses.
Pilot study and IRB: Rovers said Dartmouth will pursue IRB approval through Dartmouth College’s Committee for the Protection of Human Subjects and that the pilot study design and IRB materials remain under development. She said the pilot will be the main activity for the remainder of Dartmouth’s current contract, which expires in June 2025.
DHHS parallel analysis: DHHS is reanalyzing cancer incidence for other cancer types in Merrimack and the nine‑town study area using registry years through 2021, and will include the VA data in that analysis. Rovers told the commission the department expects analysis completion in a few months and will present findings when they are ready.
Funding concern: Commission member Maureen noted possible federal NIH funding cuts that could affect Dartmouth’s ability to secure a full study grant after the pilot phase; Dartmouth has begun informal discussions with alternative funders and foundations as a contingency.
What’s next: Rovers and DHHS expect Dartmouth to present an updated cancer registry analysis and pilot study protocol to the commission at a future meeting, pending the timing of the incorporated VA data and completion of the IRB process.
