We at DCCPS are sorry to announce that Barbara Rimer, Director and Bob Hiatt, Deputy Director, will be leaving NCI around the turn of the year. We will miss their leadership and vision, both of which have been major factors in building research resources like the CRN. However, they are both moving on to important positions in cancer control research, Barbara at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Bob at the University of California and the national office of Kaiser, which will ensure their continuing contributions to this field. NCI has approved for funding a CRN supplement for a study of HRT use prior to and subsequent to the announcement of the results of the Womens' Health Initiative trial. We are also having ongoing discussions with NHLBI, AHRQ, NCHS and the Office on Women's Health, all of whom have expressed considerable interest in supporting extensions of this study or complementary studies.

- Martin Brown, NCI

Ed's Corner of the World
News from the CRN PI

We have received final guidance from the reviewers and NCI about revisions to our renewal proposal. We will submit our modified proposal and budget in early November. The good news is that our overall budget will be about what we requested, but the projects and infrastructure will change in accord with the feedback. Does the CRN work? Consider the following chronology:

Monday , Sept. 9 - All CRN HMOs receive notice of a CDC task order for a study of end of life (EOL) care in ovarian cancer.
T uesday , Sept. 10 - Rumblings of interest, since the task order is unmistakably similar to our existing study of prostate cancer and EOL care.
W ednesday , Sept. 11, 12 noon, PDT - Task order discussed with CRN Steering Committee and interested HMOs urged to have a call.
W ednesday , Sept. 11, 2PM, PDT - Representatives from five CRN sites confer and agree to apply.
Saturday , Sept. 14 - Proposal and budgets completed and forwarded for review.
Monday , Sept. 16 - Proposal preliminarily approved pending budget modifications.
T uesday , Sept. 18 - Proposal formally approved along with first year budget of $310,000.

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