U.S. National Institutes of Health National Cancer Institute www.cancer.gov
U.S. National Institutes of Health nih.gov
NCI NewsCenter
NCI Budget Data
Visuals Online
NCI Fact Sheets
Understanding Cancer SeriesApril 23, 2010, 11:40AM
Cancer care cost the American public $104.1 billion in 2006 – the most recent year for which statistics are available – according to NCI’s newly released Cancer Trends Progress Report-2009/2010 Update. The financial burden of cancer looms even larger, however, when you consider other costs, such as losses in time and economic productivity.
July 28, 2008
Collaborations, the transfer of technology, and other types of public-private partnerships, are critical to NCI’s mission of fostering the best cancer research and promoting translation of that research from the bench to the bedside. NCI is the primary means of support for cancer research in America, with 3.8 billion dollars spent in 2007 alone on cancer research conducted at institutions across the country, and another one billion spent here at the NCI. NCI’s intramural scientific program, which is housed primarily on its campuses in Frederick and Bethesda, Md. is uniquely positioned to explore innovative diagnostic and treatment development in areas such as orphan drugs or combination therapies – areas where industry and academic sectors often face difficulties due to concerns over marketability, intellectual property, competition and liability. NCI cannot do this research alone, however, particularly because the problems being addressed require special expertise and an approach that crosses many disciplines. Partnerships have become an important component of America’s investment in cancer research.
October 31, 2003
If you lived in a poor, Southern Texas border town, where could you go to get help if you had a rare form of cancer? The answer isn’t Bethesda, Md., or even San Antonio. It’s Laredo. Thanks to a new National Cancer Institute (NCI) program that harnesses the power of the telecommunications revolution, smaller towns like Laredo and remote ones like Rapid City, S.D., can tap into the resources of major cancer centers.
This issue of BenchMarks brings information on TELESYNERGY, an integrated telecommunications system of computers, microscopes, cameras, and other equipment that can transmit X-rays and other medical images or a live exam of a patient to distant sites where clinicians can discuss the case as if they were in the same room. The system allows U.S. specialists from big cities to consult on cases all over the nation and abroad. It also allows clinicians and patients, particularly those in underserved areas, to participate in clinical trials.
Jennifer Michalowski interviewed the creators of the TELESYNERGY system for our main story on this exciting technology. You’ll also find photos, audio clips, and an animation pertaining to the interview. The accompanying story presents a broader picture of cancer research supported by NCI that employs telemedicine.