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Strategic Plans

Strategic Plan CoverThe NCI Strategic Plan for Leading the Nation

(Full PDF Version of NCI Strategic Plan This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at bottom of page to download free reader.)


Our Mission: Reduce the burden of cancer by leading an integrated effort to advance fundamental knowledge about cancer across a dynamic continuum of discovery, development and delivery

In 2002-2003 the NCI leadership, working with staff in NCI's divisions, centers, and offices, identified a number of strategic priorities:

Over the last several years, the NCI leadership has identified and implemented numerous initiatives and other strategies for carrying out these priorities.

In 2004, the NCI leadership decided to refine these priority areas in order to use them as a foundation for an NCI strategic plan. The priorities evolved into eight objectives, which comprise the NCI Strategic Plan for Leading the Nation. NCI leaders and staff conceived the Plan with ongoing input from NCI advisory groups and regular interactions with the cancer research and advocacy communities. The eight strategic objectives are:

To Preempt Cancer at Every Opportunity

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To Ensure the Best Outcomes for All

The NCI Strategic Plan outlines what NCI must do to lead the nation. As leader of the National Cancer Program, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) will continue to provide vision and leadership to the nationwide community of researchers, public health workers, healthcare providers, patients, advocates, and policymakers working to defeat cancer. This leadership includes continued work in broad research areas and optimal use of existing and new knowledge to develop and disseminate evidence-based interventions for preventing and controlling all cancers. Our success will depend on our ability to integrate activities across a seamless continuum of discovery, development, and delivery; partner with others to leverage resources and build synergy; and ensure that what we learn in the clinic and community informs future discovery.

Examples of strategies proposed in the Strategic Plan to accelerate the pace by which the fruits of discovery are harvested for the benefit of cancer patients and the public at large are:

Implementation of this strategic plan is a work in progress that will evolve within our broad objectives until the challenge goal has been accomplished. The strategic plan will offer important dividends to the basic research community. As we invest in initiatives that create greater seamlessness along the research continuum and yield new tools and new platforms for collaboration, members of the basic research community will be enabled to quickly move worthy science forward.

This document will serve as a reference and guide for the development of operational level plans and an organizer for measuring and reporting progress. We will continue to use The Nation's Investment in Cancer Research as NCI's annual operational plan and budget where we outline milestones for the fiscal year and provide more specificity as to how we will carry out the objectives described in this Strategic Plan. In all of our planning, we will endeavor to be responsive to changing public health needs and to important new scientific and technological opportunities.

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Disease-Specific Strategic Plans

Progress Review Group (PRG) Reports

This final product of Phase 1 of the Progress Review Group (PRG) lists research priorities and the resources needed to achieve them. The priorities identified have a real and proven impact on NCI's scientific plans and priorities.

Breast Cancer (August 1998) This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at bottom of page to download free reader. Gynecologic Cancers (November 2001) This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at bottom of page to download free reader.
Prostate Cancer (August 1998) This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at bottom of page to download free reader. Kidney and Bladder Cancers (August 2002) This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at bottom of page to download free reader.
Colorectal Cancer (April 2000) This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at bottom of page to download free reader. Stomach and Esophageal Cancers (December 2002) This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at bottom of page to download free reader.
Brain Tumor (November 2000) This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at bottom of page to download free reader. Sarcoma (January 2004) This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at bottom of page to download free reader.
Pancreatic Cancer (February 2001) This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at bottom of page to download free reader. Trans-HHS Cancer Health Disparities (March 2004) This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at bottom of page to download free reader.
Leukemia, Lymphoma, and Myeloma (May 2001) This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at bottom of page to download free reader. Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology (AYAO) (August 2006) This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at bottom of page to download free reader.
Lung Cancer (August 2001) This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at bottom of page to download free reader.  

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Strategic Implementation Plans to Address the Recommendations of the PRGs

These strategic implementation plans were developed by a working group composed of NCI staff. Each working group carefully considered the recommendations of the PRG in light of the existing research portfolio for that disease area. The resulting strategies address gaps in priority areas and lay out a plan that could be pursued over five years.

Pancreatic Cancer (September 2002) This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at bottom of page to download free reader.
Brain Tumor (October 2002) This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at bottom of page to download free reader.
Leukemia, Lymphoma, and Myeloma (October 2002) This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at bottom of page to download free reader.

This strategic implementation plan was developed by the LIVESTRONG Young Adult Alliance (LSYAA) in response to the Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology (AYAO) Progress Review Group (PRG) report, Closing the Gap: Research and Care Imperatives for Adolescents and Young Adults with Cancer. The implementation plan provides actionable strategies to address the five recommendations outlined in the PRG report.

Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology (AYAO) (2007) This link is a PDF file. See Adobe Reader link at 
bottom of page to download free reader. A New Item

Other Strategic Plans

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Last Updated:  April 8, 2008