Centers, Networks, and Consortia

Goal

Challenge

• Have easy access to many different patients and at-risk populations, tissue banks, new technologies, and state-of-the-art informatics.
• Be able to work together with the same ease and flexibility in multi-institutional research settings as in the same institution.

• Promote and facilitate complex scientific interactions.
• Provide the critical resources essential for the research.
• Encourage the easy exchange of information and ideas through new communications linkages.

• Organize and integrate multidisciplinary research across departments and schools within a single institution.
• Provide scientists access to the most advanced technologies and new research opportunities.
• Bring the benefits of their research directly to the public.
• Link state-of-the art research and clinical care activities within the institution, and form key partnerships with industrial, community, and state health organizations outside of the institution.

• The disease-specific Specialized Programs of Research Excellence, designed to move discoveries from the laboratory into patient and population research settings, had their origins in cancer centers.
• The new Special Populations Networks for Cancer Awareness Research and Training are designed to link local, community, and regional problems of cancer in underserved populations to the broad-based research capabilities of NCI-designated Cancer Centers.
• Centers are critical in a new NCI initiative to incorporate Minority Serving Institutions into NCI's cancer research, education, training, and outreach activities. The Cancer Genetics Network sites are headquartered in centers.
• Nearly all of the participants in the Mouse Models of Human Cancer Consortium are in NCI-designated Cancer Centers.
• Centers have worked closely with industry in developing new cancer therapeutic agents and are rapidly becoming significant partners with industry for new technology development.

• Provide patients and populations with much improved access to the newest clinical, prevention, and control trials in early detection, prevention, and therapeutic research.
• Play a key role in integrating and coordinating NCI-supported centers of excellence, networks, and consortia into one overarching, unified research framework.

• Bring together interdisciplinary and translational research teams focused on a specific disease, modality, biologic process, or scientific area.
• Rapidly address emerging scientific opportunities.
• Support interactive, multidisciplinary research.
• Provide resources, flexible exploratory funds, training, and career development.

• Link the expertise and innovation of scientists from different disciplines and diverse research backgrounds to address important questions and issues about cancer.
  
  
• Interact with NCI-designated Cancer Centers and Centers of Research Excellence in a seamless way to advance our understanding of cancer, and to improve cancer prevention, early detection, diagnosis, and treatment.

• The Cancer Genetics Network (CGN) addresses the issue of inherited predisposition to cancer. CGN is linking its goals and objectives to those of Specialized Programs of Research Excellence (SPOREs) and NCI-designated Cancer Centers.
  
  
• The newly established Mouse Models of Human Cancer Consortium will work closely with SPOREs to develop mouse models that reflect various pre-cancerous and cancerous stages of human cancer.
  
  
• The Diagnostic Imaging Network is a multi-institutional team of scientists that is evaluating and developing a new generation of imaging concepts and tools with device manufacturers and other technology developers.
  
  
• The Early Detection Research Network facilitates the discovery, development, and initial steps in clinical validation of molecular markers and assays that detect early signs of cancer. The network is already interacting with SPOREs and other interdisciplinary teams of scientists.
  
  
• The Special Populations Networks for Cancer Awareness Research and Training will involve underrepresented racial, ethnic, and minority communities in establishing research priorities and conducting research that will benefit these populations.
  
  
• The Pediatric Brain Tumor Consortium, a network of ten medical centers, is evaluating promising treatments for children with brain malignancies.

Progress Toward Meeting the Challenge

• NCI added a center in Iowa and will fund a new planning grant for developing a center in New Mexico.
• The number of cancer centers with the "Comprehensive" designation increased to 37.
• NCI has been working with institutions in Georgia, New York, Louisiana, Rhode Island, Florida, West Virginia, Kentucky, Arkansas, South Carolina, and Michigan to develop Cancer Centers or become Regional Enhancement Cancer Centers.

• Added a new cancer site and funded four ovarian cancer SPOREs. These research teams already are establishing research links and preparing to conduct inter-institutional research that cannot be accomplished through any other venue.
• Expanded its scope to include all types of cancer through a transition plan that will gradually add new cancers over the next five years.

• Engage five major institutions with medical schools (Drew, Meharry, Howard, Morehouse, and the University of Puerto Rico).
• Provide opportunities for over 300 other smaller institutions throughout the nation to partner with NCI-designated Cancer Centers.

2002 Plan and Budget Request