NCI-Designated Cancer Center
Cancer Center Support Grant
MD Anderson is one of the nation's three original comprehensive cancer centers designated by the National Cancer Act of 1971. It remains one of 57 designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers in the country today. The comprehensive cancer center designation is reserved for centers with the most outstanding cancer research, clinical care, education and community outreach and is awarded by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) through the Cancer Center Support Grant (CCSG).
CCSG support is essential to MD Anderson’s continued success because it provides structure, integration and complementary resources needed to pursue significant high-impact research, attract and retain outstanding investigators, foster innovative science that shifts practice and knowledge, implement rigorous and effective strategies across research programs, and sustain a collaborative environment that maximizes institutional and national partnerships. Our achievements would not be possible on this scale or quality without the CCSG. The CCSG is an essential catalyst to drive research collaborations in our local catchment area and drive national and global impact. CCSG provides the gold standard for how research infrastructure can maximize the impact of scientific discoveries, integrate cancer research workforce training and community outreach components to transform scientific fields, and shape public policy to save lives and preserve quality of life for all touched by cancer.
Our focus is on redefining the future of oncology through scientific priorities that align with our strategic themes of Reach, Breakthroughs and Value, as well as with the objectives of the NCI, our CCSG and the standards of excellence set by our NCI-designation as a Comprehensive Cancer Center. The six distinct scientific priorities that define MD Anderson’s future scientific vision are:
- Cancer as an Ecosystem
- Enhancing Health Outcomes
- Bench @ Bedside: Integration of Therapeutic Discovery and Translation
- Precision Diagnostics for Disease Detection and Progression
- Cancer Prevention and Interception
- Data Science Enablement
CCSG Elements
CCSSG supports nine thematic research programs comprised of more than 1,000 CCSG members, 13 full and two developing shared resources, and components including Community Outreach & Engagement, Cancer Research Training & Education Coordination, and Clinical Research.
CCSG Research Programs
CCSG Research Programs bring together scientists and physician-scientists across the institution with common scientific interests and goals to drive the advancement of cancer research, through competitively funded research grants and contracts and productive collaborations. In 2024, MD Anderson’s CCSG Research Programs were realigned from disease-focused programs to scientific theme aligned programs. The nine programs are designed to integrate basic discoveries with clinical research and care delivery, spanning the full continuum of translational research in every program. This approach supports multidisciplinary engagement, and it furthers not only translation across the full bench-to-bedside continuum in each program but also provides an incubator for translation of discoveries across disease sites.
All nine research programs include members who participate in MD Anderson’s 16 clinical site disease groups to drive investigator-initiated clinical research born in the programs.
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Cancer Neuroscience Program
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Cancer Risks and Outcomes Program
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Experimental Medicine Program
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Genomics and Gene Regulation Program
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Image-Guided Interventions and Insights Program
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Immunobiology and Tumor Microenvironment Program
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Interventional Cancer Prevention Program
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Stem Cell Biology and Cellular Therapy Program
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Tumor Evolution and Metastasis Program
Clinical Disease Research Groups
The structure of the clinical disease research groups provides a seamless feedback loop to carry successful clinical trial discoveries into the broader population, impacting policy and public programs, and back to the bench for further mechanistic investigation.
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Breast
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Dermatology
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Endocrine neoplasia and hormonal disorders
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Gastrointestinal
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Genitourinary
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Gynecology oncology
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Investigational cancer therapeutics (ICT)
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Leukemia
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Lymphoma-myeloma
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Melanoma medical oncology
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Neuro-oncology
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Pediatrics
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Radiation oncology
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Sarcoma
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Stem cell transplant
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Thoracic, head and neck medical oncology
Becoming a CCSG member
Center membership is available to scientists and clinicians who focus on cancer research at MD Anderson. Applicants must have faculty appointments or lead strategic initiatives at MD Anderson.
CCSG members are eligible for:
- Participation in and support for leading center-wide or program-based research symposia and retreats
- Invitation to participate in special limited-attendance activities
- Participation and support for community engagement, education and training activities
- Access to CCSG new faculty awards for junior faculty who have not yet received an R01 or equivalent grant from NCI-approved peer-reviewed organizations
- Access to CCSG pilot funding including seed funding for the multi-investigator team science grants that facilitate collaborative research with the goal of obtaining a peer-reviewed multi-investigator grant
- Access to funding support from CCSG program-specific request for proposals
- Subsidized support from CCSG shared resources