Description
 Research in the Cancer Control and Population Sciences (CCPS) Program covers the entire cancer control continuum—etiology and prevention, early detection and treatment, survivorship, and the end of life. The program's overall goal is to decrease cancer incidence and slow the disease's progression, and to improve the quality of life for people with or at risk for cancer. We have organized our investigative work under two broad areas: (1) cancer genetics and epidemiology and (2) behavioral oncology and health services research. Investigative work in the program's two areas includes the following:
Cancer Genetics and Epidemiology: Investigators in this area focus on
- the development of familial aggregation measures of cancer risk,
- gene localization and discovery,
- interactions between genes and dietary or environmental influences and their effects on cancer risk and survival,
- biomedical informatics applications in personalized medicine,
- the effectiveness of cancer surveillance among average-risk and high-risk individuals,
- the development of novel data collection and analytic techniques, and
- health disparities in minority groups such as American Indians and Hispanics.
Behavioral Oncology and Health Services Research: Studies in this domain include
- clinical and psychosocial correlates of preventive behaviors and clinical guideline adherence,
- randomized behavioral intervention trials,
- patient-provider communication,
- family communication,
- risk communication,
- quality of life, and
- symptom monitoring.
The new health services research initiative stimulates research on patterns of care, system-level barriers to clinical guideline adherence, and care outcomes in academic and community settings. Observations from these studies may inform quality improvement programs and clinical decision support systems.
Much of the behavioral and health services research addresses health disparities in racial and ethnic minorities, elderly individuals, and geographically underserved populations.
If we are to reduce the cancer burden, our research must involve investigators from a variety of disciplines whose diverse skills stimulate innovative research. For this reason, the program specifically includes investigators with interests in epidemiology, behavioral and health sciences, biomedical informatics, genetics, nursing, statistics, and clinical oncology. The interdisciplinary nature of our group and its frequent collaboration with laboratory and clinical scientists within and outside the CCPS program stimulates scientific exchange relevant to a common set of cancer prevention and control issues. These interactions occur routinely as collaborations on research projects as well as through program- and center-wide activities.
The Cancer Control and Population Sciences Program currently receives approximately $18,646,317 per year of direct, and $25,017,615 of total research support from the NCI, other NIH institutes, the American Cancer Society and other funding agencies. Cancer focused articles published in 2007 total 83 including 19 inter-programmatic and 32 intra-programmatic publications.
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