Institutional Profile

Research at MD Anderson

At MD Anderson, important scientific knowledge gained in the laboratory is rapidly translated to clinical care. MD Anderson is home to one of the world’s largest cancer clinical trials programs, providing patients with access to life-saving investigational drugs before they are approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

In FY 2020, MD Anderson invested more than $973 million in research.

MD Anderson receives millions of dollars in grant funding from the Cancer Prevention Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) for research, prevention, recruitment and training. MD Anderson received almost $55 million in funding from the Cancer Prevention & Research Institute of Texas in FY20, making it the year’s No. 1 recipient of CPRIT grants.

MD Anderson holds six National Cancer Institute Specialized Programs of Research Excellence (SPORE) grants in bladder, brain, leukemia, lung, ovarian and thyroid cancers.

MD Anderson’s Moon Shots Program™ continues to dramatically accelerate the pace of converting scientific discoveries into lifesaving advances that reduce cancer deaths. Launched in 2012 with six moon shots, the program has been expanded to 13 multidisciplinary teams of cancer experts collaborating and innovating to stop close to 20 types of cancer that collectively account for 63% of cancer deaths annually.

Commitment to Cancer Prevention

Cancer prevention plays a vital role in advancing MD Anderson’s mission to end cancer.

In FY 2020:

• There were more than 31,000 patient visits to our Lyda Hill Cancer Prevention Center, which provides cancer screenings and risk-reduction services.
• 1,400 people received tobacco cessation services through our Tobacco Treatment Program.
• MD Anderson held 324 cancer prevention education programs in the community.