Nonprofit research institute RTI International has joined the CEO Roundtable on Cancer in its mission to eliminate cancer as a personal disease and public health problem.
“RTI’s decades of research experience will be a tremendous asset to the CEO Roundtable as we look for new ways to reduce the burden of cancer around the world,” said William Louv, PhD, chief executive officer of the Roundtable. “We are very excited to have them aboard.”
The Roundtable was founded in 2001, when former President George H.W. Bush challenged a group of executives to “do something bold and venturesome about cancer within your own corporate families.” The CEOs responded by creating and encouraging the widespread adoption of the CEO Cancer Gold Standard® accreditation, which calls for organizations to evaluate their health benefits and workplace culture and take extensive, concrete actions in five key areas of health and wellness to address cancer in the workplace.
In 2018, the CEO Roundtable established Project Data Sphere® (PDS) to accelerate cancer research through its online data platform and data-focused research programs.
“We are honored to lend our expertise as an official member of the CEO Roundtable on Cancer,” said RTI President and CEO Tim J. Gabel. “We take a holistic approach to staff wellbeing and are committed to reducing the risk and burden of cancer among staff, families and communities through our benefits programs and research.”
RTI has been a Gold Standard employer since 2010. To earn Gold Standard accreditation, an employer must take concrete actions to reduce the risk and burden of cancer: prohibit tobacco use and support tobacco cessation efforts; promote physical activity, healthy nutrition and weight management; provide health insurance options that include detecting cancer at its earliest stages, access to quality care and participation in cancer clinical trials; promote employee awareness of these initiatives; and support the needs of cancer survivors in the workplace.
RTI has also provided data for PDS’ open-access data sharing platform, which provides a place where the world’s research community can broadly share, integrate, and analyze patient-level data from academic and industry cancer clinical trials. The RTI/PDS collaboration resulted in the inclusion of social, economic, and health care-related data, enabling researchers to assess the impact of socioeconomic factors on cancer survival and related outcomes.
RTI is an independent, nonprofit research organization dedicated to conducting research that improves the human condition. With a worldwide staff of more than 6,000 people, RTI offers innovative research in survey and statistics, health and pharmaceuticals, advanced technology, education and training, economic and social policy, international development, energy and the environment. RTI was founded in 1958 as the first scientific organization in North Carolina’s Research Triangle Park. In addition to its NC headquarters, RTI has offices on four continents.