07 Sep ‘All of Us Research’ Program reaches 100,000 participants
The All of Us Research Program reached an important milestone, enrolling 100,000 participants nationwide in its historic journey to positively impact the future of health research and treatment for generations.
The All of Us Research Program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, which is part of a Wisconsin consortium, including Marshfield Clinic, the Medical College of Wisconsin and the BloodCenter of Wisconsin, is one of several sites nationwide actively recruiting and enrolling participants into the program with the goal of reaching 1 million or more nationwide. The program officially launched nationally in May of this year.
“It’s incredible how far this initiative has progressed in a relatively short timeframe,” said Dr. Beth Burnside, co-principal investigator, All of Us – UW. “There’s a lot of work yet to be done, but our UW engagement and enrollment teams are excited about the response the program has received on- and off- campus. We’re looking forward to engaging more UW colleagues and students this fall with the kickoff of the academic school year.”
The program crossed the 100,000 milestone last week in its pursuit of building the largest health database of its kind in an effort to explore how lifestyle, environment and biological makeup affect health and disease.
“It can take other research studies decades to get where we are,” said Eric Dishman, director, All of Us Research Program. “We’ve already achieved incredible milestones in record time, and we’re still getting better each day.”
Perhaps most impressive is the overall diversity of the current enrollees: 75% of the core participants come from communities that have been underrepresented in research.
“Chronic disease falls disproportionately on members of communities of color, so the fact that All of Us is making a concerted effort to include these populations will go a long way toward better diagnosis, treatment and more comprehensively inform us about those who are at the greatest risk,” said Dr. Dorothy Farrar Edwards, co-principal investigator, All of Us-UW.
Participants in the program are asked to share their electronic health record (EHR), answer questions through online surveys, have physical measurements taken and submit samples of blood and urine. Enrollees receive $25 upon completion.
For more information, including how to participate, visit allofus.wisc.edu; email allofus@hslc.wisc.edu or call 888-294-2661.