Eliminating the Suffering and Death Due to Cancer

The National Cancer Institute, as leader of the National Cancer Program, provides vision and direction to the national community of researchers, public health workers, healthcare providers, patients, advocates, and policymakers working to defeat cancer. Our success will be measured by our ability to leverage resources, remove the major barriers that impede progress, and ensure that all new activities reflect past lessons learned. We must maintain our momentum so that the progress we have made leads us into a better future for those with, or at risk for, cancer. We will reach our Challenge Goal through investments in scientific research, technology leadership and capacity building, application in public health and patient care, and communication and transfer of results.

Our new paradigm for eliminating the suffering and death due to cancer is to preempt its initiation and progression at every possible point. We must prevent cancer initiation whenever possible, eliminate it in its early stages when it does occur, and help cancer patients live with, rather than die from, the disease. NCI supports basic research and intervention development and works with others to incorporate evidence-based prevention strategies into public health programs and medical practice. New molecular diagnostics are on the horizon that will help us make earlier and more individualized assessments and improve the potential for the successful elimination of some cancers. And more targeted therapies and new delivery technologies promise to dramatically improve our ability to control or modulate the effects of other cancers.

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Scientific Research

NCI supports a broad range of scientific research to expand our understanding of cancer at the molecular level and to learn how its development and progression are affected by behavioral and environmental factors. These insights provide the foundation for new interventions and strategies in prevention, control, early detection and diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up care.

Each year, NCI supports nearly 5,000 principal investigators to perform research projects that result in better ways to combat cancer. These dedicated scientists conduct studies at NCI (intramural) and at nearly 650 universities, hospitals, and other sites in almost every State in the Nation and in more than 20 foreign countries. Intramural research activities serve as hubs for new development through cutting edge basic, clinical, and epidemiological research. Extramural program experts provide guidance and oversight for research conducted at universities, teaching hospitals, and other organizations.

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Technology Leadership and Capacity Building

NCI leads the Nation in using innovative approaches for harnessing the full potential of advanced technologies for cancer. Recent advances in bioinformatics are dramatically accelerating the rate with which we can process large amounts of information. New molecular imaging and biosensing technologies are opening doors to faster, more accurate detection and diagnosis, facilitating more precise image-guided therapies, and making it easier to monitor treatment outcomes. Nanomedicine offers hope for streamlining cancer care through revolutionary preventive, diagnostic, and therapeutic applications.

We help to build the capacity of the cancer research enterprise through NCI-supported centers, networks, and consortia that allow scientists from around the world to share their expertise and resources. NCI provides incentives for research in special areas of need and for collaborative efforts that promote interdisciplinary team science. Tissue samples, statistics on cancer incidence and mortality, databases of genetic information, imaging databases, mouse models of cancer, full length gene clones, and software for analyzing statistical and genetic data are provided to investigators in all research settings at little or no cost.

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Application in Public Health and Patient Care

NCI is working with other agencies and organizations to bridge the gap between the promise of research and its application for people. We work to ensure that newly developed interventions move through well designed, well run clinical trials and that those found effective and safe are made available to cancer patients everywhere. Institute leaders have established partnerships with the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to speed the development of and improve access to safe and affordable cancer prevention, early detection, and treatment options. Others work with Federal, State, and local agencies and other organizations to develop and support the use of evidence-based tobacco control strategies and promote healthier diets and exercise programs known to be preventive against a number of cancers. In addition, several Patient Navigator Programs are being piloted around the country and will be evaluated for their efficacy and cost effectiveness in helping cancer patients gain access to cancer prevention information, screening, diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up care. NCI is also playing a leadership role in Health and Human Services Department-wide efforts to eliminate health disparities in our country.

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Communication and Transfer of Results

NCI provides Web-based information on cancer and clinical trials, toll-free telephone service in all regions of the country, and printed brochures and educational packages distributed directly to cancer patients and their families as well as to oncology practices and patient advocacy organizations. The NCI Cancer Research Portfolio and the International Cancer Research Portfolio Web sites provide invaluable resources to investigators desiring to locate research information or find collaborators in areas of interest. We foster collaborations for the transfer of research results through liaisons with other organizations. For example, NCI's Cancer Information Service Partnership Program focuses on reaching minority and other medically underserved populations. Partnering with over 450 public and private organizations nationwide, we collaborate on data driven, outcome oriented education and public health projects and provide technical assistance to build capacity in clinical trials, breast and cervical cancer screening, general cancer awareness, and tobacco education.

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