David King Community Clinical Scientist Award

The David King Community Clinical Scientist Award recognizes active community clinical research leaders. Award winners have demonstrated leadership in the development, participation, and evaluation of clinical studies and/or are active in the development of new screening, risk assessment, treatment, or supportive care programs for cancer patients.

This prestigious award is named after David K. King, MD, FACP, an ACCC past president, who passed away after a brief battle with cancer. Dr. King spent his entire career caring for individuals with cancer and advocating for access to quality care, while also championing the Community Clinical Oncology Program and the value of clinical research in the community setting.

Leana Cabrera Chien is a Nurse Practitioner at the City of Hope Center for Cancer and Aging in Duarte, California. She specializes in the care of older adults with cancer. She earned her Master of Science in Nursing degree with an emphasis in Gerontology at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) and her Bachelor of Science Degree (BSN) at Mount St. Mary’s University. She joined City of Hope’s medical oncology team in 2016. She started her journey as a collaborating investigator on several clinical trials including “Advancing Screening and Treatment for Older Patients with Cancer” which includes a telemedicine cohort and “Treating Hospitalized Older Adults with Cancer: Integrating the Principles of Geriatric Medicine and Oncology Care”.

In 2019, with her two APN colleagues, she developed and launched an advanced practice nurse (APN) Geriatric Oncology clinic – called the Aging Wellness Clinic. In this clinic, a team of APNs provide a holistic approach to wellness, offering specialized care for older adults with cancer. Additionally, through a UniHealth grant she offers telemedicine services to a rural community site to create a model of care for Older Adults with Cancer via telemedicine. Through a Pfizer grant, she co-leads a program to evaluate “Geriatric Oral Adherence and Longevity Surveillance for Older Adults with Metastatic Cancer.” She also provides support in educating oncology nurses to care for older adults. Ms. Chien is an active participant in ACCC's “Multidisciplinary Approaches to Caring for Older Adults with Cancer” program, serving as faculty for several webinars including the recent “Digital Bridges: Telehealth Solutions for Older Adults.”

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