Doctor Kiran Shokar, lead for the Connect colorectal screening project, presented outcomes from the first two years of a CPRIT‑funded initiative to build a statewide colorectal cancer screening strategy.

Shokar said the program’s objectives are to ensure every eligible person in Texas has a pathway to screening, to establish a stakeholder network representing regions and community types, to develop infrastructure and data systems, and to prioritize areas by need. The project will standardize reporting measures across CPRIT screening grantees, develop a repository of tools and best practices, run pilot programs (including community health worker navigator models) and build cost and impact models for planners. Shokar emphasized mapping gaps in colonoscopy and endoscopy access and noted the program’s focus on rural and medically underserved counties.

Members asked about research opportunities built into the infrastructure: Doctor Rosenfeld asked whether a biobank or a commercializable predictive test could be supported by the data; Shokar said the current scope emphasizes clinical services and program infrastructure but that the data platform and infrastructure could support research and biomarker studies with additional research funding. Committee members also raised the role private practice oncologists and rural providers could play in expanding clinical trial and treatment networks; staff confirmed rural oncology trial accelerator awards are intended to help expand that capacity.

Shokar closed by noting Connect’s emphasis on cost‑effectiveness modeling, stakeholder engagement and an annual symposium to disseminate best practices; staff said the project will produce standardized metrics and a public repository to help other communities adopt similar approaches.