"I chose to participate in a clinical trial because it was a way to get involved in cutting-edge research."
Cancer survivor Tom Rodabaugh and his wife Vickie Rodabaugh, NCCCP St. Francis Cancer Center, Grand Island, Nebraska See more photos
Forty percent of NCCCP program funding is dedicated to reducing cancer healthcare disparities in the communities in which the NCCCP hospitals are located.
The NCCCP cancer centers reach out to medically underserved members of their communities by offering free cancer screening events, cancer education programs, patient navigation services to improve care coordination, and formation of partnerships with local community organizations, such as churches and advocacy groups.
All NCCCP hospitals are required to have a policy that all patients screened for cancer are offered treatment for cancer regardless of their ability to pay.Improving Access. Advancing Care. Expanding Research... In the Community
Local communities benefit from having a cancer center that is affiliated with the National Cancer institute. Like the larger, mainly university-based NCI-designated cancer centers, the NCCCP community hospitals are working to improve patient access to cutting-edge cancer therapies. Their patient-care teams of physicians, nurses, radiologists and other professionals engage in scientific collaboration with other NCCCP hospitals, oncology experts at the NCI, and other cancer research organizations. This approach leads to an environment where patient treatment plans are developed from evidence-based practices with the goal of providing patients with the best possible outcomes.
Community Hospitals Treat Most Cancer Patients
Community hospitals diagnose and treat more than eight out of 10 U.S. cancer patients. So it makes sense for NCI to partner with local hospitals to deliver an enhanced level of cancer care to patients in the communities where they live.
The NCCCP is one of a number of NCI programs focused on community-based cancer care including the Community Networks Program (CNP), the Community Clinical Oncology Program (CCOP) and the Minority Based Community Clinical Oncology Program (MB-CCOP).
Patient Benefits
Patients at NCCCP hospitals benefit from access to:
- Multidisciplinary, state-of-the-art treatment
- Cancer education and screening services
- Clinical trials that are testing new cancer treatments
- Enhanced survivorship and palliative care programs
- Genetic testing and counseling services
A National Institutes of Health Institute
Part of the National Institutes of Health, NCI is the federal government's principal agency for cancer research and training. NCI established the NCCCP network of community hospitals in 2007 to complement the extraordinary cancer care practiced at the nation's largest, academic-based cancer centers, and to offer that high level of care in community hospitals, where patients can remain close to their homes, work and family.
