Pilot Study Begins for NCI's Proposed NCCCP at 14 Sites

BETHESDA, Maryland—The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has initiated a 3-year pilot study for its National Community Cancer Center Program (NCCCP) to explore issues surrounding the effective delivery of cancer care at the local level. The 14 participating sites will share $5 million annually. An independent contractor will evaluate their efforts, and at the end of the study, NCI and outside experts will make recommendations about expanding the NCCCP concept nationwide. "The goal of this project is to identify the critical factors that define a state-of-the-art community cancer center," NCI director John E. Niederhuber, MD, said at a meeting of the National Cancer Advisory Board.

The participants are: the Billings Clinic, Montana; Hartford Hospital, Connecticut; St. Joseph's/Candler, Savannah; Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, Baton Rouge; Sanford USD Medical Center, Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Spartanburg Regional Hospital, South Carolina; St. Joseph Hospital, Orange, California; Christiana Hospital, Newark, Delaware; St.Vincent Indianapolis Hospital; Columbia St. Mary's, Milwaukee; Brackenridge Hospital, Austin, Texas; Penrose-St. Francis Health Services, Colorado Springs; St. Joseph Medical Center, Towson, Maryland; and a coordinated site of three Nebraska hospitals: Good Samaritan, Kearney; St. Elizabeth Regional Medical Center, Lincoln; and St. Francis Medical Center, Grand Island.