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Learn About Cancer Centers in Your Community
By the National Cancer Institute
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You may live close to an NCI-designated Cancer Center. Perhaps there is one in your town. They are often well-known institutions, such as the Mayo Clinic, and are an important source of care for cancer patients. These cancer centers are part of the NCI Cancer Centers Program, a network of 65 cancer centers that deliver some of the latest medical advances to patients and families. This program is very important to the fabric of cancer research and to ensuring that the benefits of this research are passed along to all Americans, regardless of socio-economic status or race and ethnic background. For more information about the NCI Cancer Centers Program, please visit http://cancercenters.cancer.gov.

Cancer centers are part of NCI's external (extramural) research program and conduct research on cancer prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. They also conduct research related to the increased burden of cancer among some minority populations. This research can save lives and allow more and more people to live with cancer. Some of the funding these centers receive for cancer research comes from your tax dollars through NCI funding.

Other cancer center programs supported by NCI include Cancer Center Research Bases, which are part of NCI's Community Clinical Oncology Program (CCOP). CCOPs create networks between the Research Bases and community hospitals and physicians, improving people's access to NCI-sponsored clinical trials within their communities. For more information about CCOP, please visit http://dcp.cancer.gov/programs-resources/programs/ccop.

Of special interest to communities of color is the fact that NCI cancer centers reach out to underserved populations as part of their mission. Members of racial and ethnic minority groups, rural populations, and people of low socioeconomic status have all benefited from being part of the community served by these cancer centers. It's important that you take time to become familiar with these centers located throughout the United States. They are a premier source of cancer care if you or a loved one is ever confronted with cancer and needs treatment.

In 2007, NCI brought more community-located cancer centers into its research circle through the National Cancer Institute Community Cancer Center Pilot Program (NCCCP). Recognizing that approximately 85 percent of cancer patients receive their care in the community in which they live, this program selected 10 health systems with 16 locations across the United States to assist in improving cancer care in the community setting. The primary goals of NCCCP, in partnership with the NCI cancer centers, include: expanding minority access to cancer care and to clinical trials, using patient specimens to further cancer research, and developing electronic medical records for coordinating patient care. For a complete list of NCCCP locations and updates, please visit http://ncccp.cancer.gov/.

To learn more about the NCI Cancer Centers Program, you may visit: http://cancercenters.cancer.gov (http://www.cancer.gov/espanol/instituto). Here is a map to help you locate the Cancer Center closest to you: http://cancercenters.cancer.gov/cancer_centers/map-cancer-centers.html

As always, you can call the Cancer Information Service to answer any questions you may have about cancer, at 1-800-4-CANCER. For Spanish speaking callers, Spanish speaking information specialists are available. Also, you can go online to http://www.cancer.gov (http://www.cancer.gov/espanol). You may also visit http://www.cancer.gov/clinicaltrials/ for information about cancer clinical trials.

NCI leads the National Cancer Program and the NIH effort to dramatically reduce the burden of cancer and improve the lives of cancer patients and their families, through research into prevention and cancer biology, the development of new interventions, and the training and mentoring of new researchers. For more information about cancer, please visit the NCI Web site at http://www.cancer.gov or call NCI's Cancer Information Service at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237).

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