The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has awarded a five-year grant to Franciscan Health System (FHS), to conduct multi-site cancer clinical trials and cancer care delivery research studies in their communities.

Franciscan is a member of the Catholic Health Initiatives Institute for Research and Innovation’s Oncology Research Alliance. The Alliance is comprised of leadership from CHI’s National Oncology Service Line, Institute for Research and Innovation, and participating research sites.

The grant was awarded under the new NCI Community Oncology Research Program (NCORP), a national network of investigators, cancer care providers, academic institutions, and other organizations that provide care to diverse populations in community-based health care practices across the U.S. The total program funding is $93 million a year for five years.

NCORP will design and conduct trials to improve cancer prevention, cancer control, screening, and post-treatment management. The new program will have an emphasis on cancer care delivery research, focusing on diverse and multi-level factors (e.g., social, financing systems, process, technology, and others) that affect access to and quality of care in the community.

NCORP replaces two previous NCI community-based clinical research programs, including the NCI Community Cancer Centers Program (NCCCP), which funded research-based cancer care in several CHI market. The new program builds on the strengths of the previous programs and aims to better address the most pressing issues affecting the conduct and delivery of care in communities across the nation.