The National Cancer Institute Comprehensive Cancer Center Designation

The National Cancer Act of 1971 created the Cancer Centers Program to encourage major academic and research institutions to build broad-based, interdisciplinary programs in cancer research. The goal of a cancer center is to facilitate interaction among research groups from different disciplines and orientations, in order to integrate and focus diverse research on the problem of cancer.

Through this program, the National Cancer Institute funds more than 60 cancer centers engaged in multidisciplinary research to reduce cancer incidence, morbidity, and mortality. The program supports three types of centers:

• Cancer Centers (formerly called Basic Science Cancer Centers) focus on basic or cancer control research, but do not have clinical Oncology Groups.
• Clinical Cancer Centers conduct programs in clinical research, and may also have programs in other research areas
• Comprehensive Cancer Centers conduct programs in all three areas of research-basic, clinical, and prevention and control-and must have a strong body of interactive research that bridges these areas. In addition, Comprehensive Cancer Centers provide information, outreach, and education to both health care professionals and the lay community.

In 1990, Norris Cotton Cancer Center became one of 19 Comprehensive Cancer Centers in the country. Today, 41 cancer centers meet the NCI criteria for comprehensive status.