National Cancer Institute

U.S. DEPARTMENT 

OF HEALTH AND

HUMAN SERVICES

National Institutes 

of Health
2

The National Cancer Institute’s Web

site, www.cancer.gov, provides easy

access to comprehensive research-based

information and resources for cancer

researchers, health professionals,

patients and their families, advocates,

news media, and the public.

The content on www.cancer.gov is

arranged within six major gateway

areas: Cancer Topics, News, Clinical

Trials, Cancer Statistics, Research &

Funding, and About NCI.

This booklet highlights the

information and resources available

through www.cancer.gov. Organized

topically, it demonstrates the variety

and depth of NCI content on the Web.

All Web sites listed in this booklet can

be reached by visiting:

www.cancer.gov
3

A to Z List of Cancers

www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/

alphalist

Coping with Cancer

www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/coping

Support and Resources

www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/support

Cancer Topic Searches

www.cancer.gov/search/

search_cancertopics.aspx

Cancer Information Service

(CIS)

1-800-4-CANCER

(1-800-422-6237)

http://cis.nci.nih.gov

LiveHelp Online Information

Service

https://cissecure.nci.nih.gov/

livehelp/welcome.asp

Smokefree.gov

www.smokefree.gov

Aggregated information on more

than 50 types of cancer, including

facts about treatment, detection,

prevention, statistics, coping with

side effects, clinical trials, and more

Information on managing side effects

and complications caused by cancer

and its treatment

Support for cancer patients and

caregivers, including information on

finances, insurance, survivorship,

home care, and hospice care

Prepared literature searches of the

National Library of Medicine’s

PubMed database on more than 100

different topics

Toll-free telephone service that

provides answers to questions about

cancer, smoking cessation assistance,

and NCI publications; responds to

calls in English and Spanish;

Monday-Friday, 9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

local time

Live, online assistance for Web users

searching NCI sites; Monday-Friday,

9:00 a.m. – 11:00 p.m. ET

Offers science-driven tools,

information, and support that have

been effective in helping smokers quit

CANCER TOPICS

INFORMATION PRODUCTS & RESOURCES
4

PDQ®

(Physician Data Query)

www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq

NCI Terminology Resources

www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/

terminologyresources

Understanding Cancer Series

www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/

UnderstandingCancer

NCI Publications Locator

https://cissecure.nci.nih.gov/ncipubs

NCI News

www.cancer.gov/newscenter

NCI Cancer Bulletin

www.cancer.gov/ncicancerbulletin

Current peer-reviewed, evidencebased information summaries about

cancer treatment, screening,

prevention, genetics, supportive

care, and complementary and

alternative medicine, plus a clinical

trials directory, presented in versions

for patients and health professionals

The NCI’s reference terminology –

covering clinical care, basic and

translational research, public

information, and administrative

activities – and related vocabulary

resources that support NCI’s and a

growing number of other

biomedical data systems

Downloadable, graphics-rich

tutorials for educational use by

teachers, medical professionals,

patients, and the interested public

NCI publications and education

materials available to view or order

online

Provides up-to-the-minute NCI

press releases and background

materials on research advances of

interest to the media and the public

Weekly newsletter from the NCI

that provides useful and

authoritative news about cancer

research, including important NCI

programs and initiatives

NEWS
5

Learning about Clinical Trials

www.cancer.gov/clinicaltrials/

learning

Search for Clinical Trials

www.cancer.gov/search/

clinicaltrials

Conducting Clinical Trials

www.cancer.gov/clinicaltrials/

conducting

Clinical Trials at NIH

http://ccr.cancer.gov/trials/cssc

NCI Integrated Clinical Trials

http://integratedtrials.nci.nih.gov

Cancer Therapy Evaluation

Program (CTEP)

http://ctep.cancer.gov

Information on clinical trials,

educational materials, patient care

costs, and NCI programs that

conduct clinical trials

Searchable database (PDQ®) for

more than 3000 active cancer

clinical trials from around the world

Resources for new and experienced

clinical trials investigators, including

instructions for listing clinical trials

with PDQ®

Information for the public about

NCI clinical trials at NIH and

information for health professionals

on how to refer a patient

Information about the NCI’s efforts

to increase the efficiency of cancer

clinical trials, decrease redundancy

and administrative burdens, and

better coordinate the development

and delivery of cancer therapies

Lead NCI program in sponsoring

extramural cancer treatment trials

with a wide array of resources for

research institutions, physicians, and

investigators interested in

developing novel anticancer

treatments

CLINICAL TRIALS
6

Cancer Trials Support Unit

(CTSU)

www.ctsu.org

Community Clinical Oncology

Program (CCOP)

www.cancer.gov/prevention/ccop

Surveillance, Epidemiology, and

End Results (SEER)

www.seer.cancer.gov

Cancer Mortality Maps & Graphs

www3.cancer.gov/atlasplus

Cancer Trends Progress Report

http://progressreport.cancer.gov

State Cancer Profiles

http://statecancerprofiles.cancer.gov

Program that provides access and

information about phase II and

phase III NCI-sponsored

Cooperative Group treatment trials

for physicians and patients on a

wide variety of cancers

Network for conducting NCIapproved cancer treatment,

prevention, and control clinical

trials by community medical

practitioners

Authoritative source of information

on U.S. cancer incidence and

survival

Interactive maps, graphs (accessible

to the visually impaired), text,

tables, and figures showing

geographic patterns and time trends

of cancer death rates from 1950-

1994 for more than 40 cancers

Report that describes the nation's

progress in reducing the cancer

burden across the full cancer control

continuum, from prevention, early

detection, and treatment to the

impact of deaths from cancer

Interactive graphics and maps of

cancer statistics at the national,

state, and county level by

geographic region, race/ethnicity,

cancer site, age, and sex

CANCER STATISTICS
7

The Nation’s Investment in

Cancer Research

http://plan.cancer.gov

Cancer Research Portfolio

http://researchportfolio.cancer.gov

International Cancer Research

Portfolio

www.cancerportfolio.org

Cancer Imaging Program

http://imaging.cancer.gov

Radiation Research Program

(RRP)

www3.cancer.gov/rrp

NCI Center for Bioinformatics

(NCICB)

http://ncicb.nci.nih.gov

The NCI’s plan and budget

proposal by fiscal year

Searchable database of funded grant

and contract awards; updated

monthly and organized by type of

cancer and type of research

Database of research funded by

cancer research organizations

throughout the world, including the

NCI

Program that supports research and

development of imaging methods,

devices, and contrast agents for

detection, monitoring, and imageguiding therapy of cancer

Supports preclinical and clinical

radiation oncology research,

including research on the factors

that affect radiation response, the

effects of radiation on normal

tissue, and the combination of

radiotherapy and other therapies

Develops infrastructure components

and tools to aid information

management and integration of

NCI-supported research initiatives

RESEARCH & FUNDING

RESEARCH PROGRAMS
8

Center to Reduce Cancer Health

Disparities (CRCHD)

http://crchd.nci.nih.gov

Developmental Therapeutics

Program (DTP)

www.dtp.nci.nih.gov

Office of Cancer Complementary

and Alternative Medicine

(OCCAM)

www.cancer.gov/cam

Cancer Survivorship Research

www.survivorship.cancer.gov

Office of Technology and

Industrial Relations (OTIR)

http://otir.cancer.gov

NCI Alliance for Nanotechnology

in Cancer

http://nano.cancer.gov

Technology Transfer Branch

(TTB)

http://ttb.cancer.gov

Coordinates the NCI’s efforts to

understand the causes of health

disparities and develop and integrate

effective interventions to eliminate

them

Drug discovery and preclinical

development arm of the NCI and a

source for Web-based data and tools,

vialed and plated compounds, tumor

cells, and animals

Coordinates the NCI’s

complementary and alternative

medicine research and information

activities

Funding information, current

research summaries, and resources

such as U.S. cancer survivor

prevalence statistics and posttreatment resources for cancer

survivors

Point of contact for the development

of new technologies and scientific

collaboration between the NCI and

the private sector

Comprehensive initiative designed to

harness the power of nanotechnology

to radically change the way we

diagnose, treat, and prevent cancer

Point of contact for collaborative

research agreements with industry

and academia for the commercialization of NIH-developed technologies
9

Cancer Centers Program

www3.cancer.gov/cancercenters

Specialized Programs of Research

Excellence (SPOREs)

http://spores.nci.nih.gov

Early Detection Research Network

(EDRN)

http://edrn.nci.nih.gov

Cancer Genetic Markers of

Susceptibility (cGEMS)

http://cgems.cancer.gov/

NCI Research Resources

http://resresources.nci.nih.gov

Tissue Array Research Program

(TARP)

http://ccr.cancer.gov/

tech_initiatives/tarp

Supports major academic and

research institutions throughout the

U.S. to sustain broad-based,

coordinated, interdisciplinary

programs in cancer research

Program to bring to clinical care

settings novel ideas that have the

potential to reduce cancer incidence

and mortality and improve cancer

prevention, detection, diagnosis,

treatment, and control

Program focused on translational

research to identify cancer risk, early

cancers, and to translate molecular

knowledge into practical clinical

tests through a collaborative,

multidisciplinary network

Initiative to identify genetic

alterations that make people

susceptible to prostate and breast

cancer

Searchable database of laboratory

tools, reagents, services, and a portal

to many other available NCI

resources

Source for multi-tumor tissue

microarray slides with 500 samples

of normal and cancerous tissue for

performing high-throughput

screening

RESEARCH RESOURCES
10

Specimen Resource Locator

http://pluto3.nci.nih.gov/tissue/

default.htm

Cooperative Human Tissue

Network

www.chtn.ims.nci.nih.gov

Mouse Models of Human Cancers

Consortium (MMHCC)

http://emice.nci.nih.gov

Cancer Genome Anatomy Project

(CGAP)

http://cgap.nci.nih.gov

The Cancer Genome Atlas

http://cancergenome.nih.gov

Cancer Biomedical Informatics

Grid (caBIG)

http://cabig.nci.nih.gov

Searchable database of NCIsupported sources for normal, benign,

pre-cancerous, and cancerous human

tissue specimens for cancer research

Specializes in the prospective

procurement, preservation, and

distribution of human tissues for

research to meet the researcher’s

individual requirements

Resources and information for the

application of mouse models in

cancer research, including organ site

models, genetic and biological

pathways databases, learning tools,

and clinical applications

Database of human and mouse

genomic sequences, including

expressed sequences, expressed

sequence tags, gene expression

patterns, and single nuclear

polymorphisms, as well as informatics

tools to query and analyze data

Comprehensive and coordinated

effort to learn the molecular basis of

cancer through the application of

genome analysis technologies,

including large-scale genome

sequencing

Voluntary network or grid connecting

individuals and institutions to enable

the sharing of data and tools, creating

a World Wide Web of cancer research
11

Cancer Family Registries

(CFRs)

www.epi.grants.cancer.gov/CFR

Cancer Control PLANET

http://cancercontrolplanet.cancer.gov

Funding Announcements

www.cancer.gov/researchandfunding/

announcements

Extramural Funding 

Opportunities

http://deainfo.nci.nih.gov/

funding.htm

Cancer Research Initiatives

http://cri.cancer.gov

Scientific Programs and 

Contact Persons

www.cancer.gov/researchandfunding/

contacts

Resources for population- and

clinic-based interdisciplinary

research with a focus on the genetic

and molecular epidemiology of

breast, ovarian, and colon cancer

Portal that brings together evidencebased online tools for health

educators and health practitioners

to help communities better

understand and address their cancer

burden

Research grant and contract funding

opportunities from the NCI

(includes RFAs, PAs, RFPs, SBIR,

and STTR)

Grant program announcements,

application forms, review process,

guidelines and descriptions, and

quick guide to preparing grant

applications

Research funding opportunities

organized by type of cancer and

type of research and other research

funding information

NCI staff to contact about grant

applications and funding

opportunities, organized by research

program areas

RESEARCH FUNDING
12

Extramural Training Sponsored

by NCI

www.cancer.gov/researchandfunding/

training

Intramural Fellowships and

Internships

www.cancer.gov/researchandfunding/

fellowships

International Scientist Exchange

Program

www.cancer.gov/aboutnci/

oia/onco-fac/page1

NIH Research Training

Opportunities

www.grants.nih.gov/training

NCI Organization Charts and

Function Statements

www3.cancer.gov/oma/orgchart.htm

Center for Cancer Research

(CCR)

http://ccr.cancer.gov

Training and education funding

opportunities from the NCI for

investigators, pre- and postdoctoral

candidates, and junior faculty

independent researchers

Fellowships, internships, and

postdoctoral opportunities available

through the NCI

International research and training

opportunities, including scientist

exchange programs

Current training opportunities at

the NIH

Describes the responsibilities of

each NCI office and division, as

well as where they fit within the

institute

Conducts basic, clinical, and

translational research; trains young

investigators and provides patient

care in a research setting

TRAINING

ABOUT NCI

NCI DIVISIONS & OFFICES
13

Division of Cancer Biology

(DCB)

http://dcb.nci.nih.gov

Division of Cancer Control and

Population Sciences (DCCPS)

www.cancercontrol.cancer.gov

Division of Cancer Epidemiology

and Genetics (DCEG)

www.dceg.cancer.gov

Division of Cancer Prevention

(DCP)

www.cancer.gov/prevention

Division of Cancer Treatment

and Diagnosis (DCTD)

www.cancer.gov/dctd

Division of Extramural Activities

(DEA)

http://deainfo.nci.nih.gov

NCI at Frederick

http://web.ncifcrf.gov

Supports basic and applied research

on cancer cell biology, including

research on carcinogenesis and

cancer immunology

Conducts and supports genetic,

epidemiologic, behavioral, social,

and surveillance cancer research to

reduce cancer risk, incidence, and

death, and to enhance cancer

survivorship

Conducts population-based research

on environmental and genetic

determinants of cancer

Supports and conducts research and

clinical trials to identify a person’s

risk of developing cancer and to

find ways to reduce that risk

Supports research in biomedical

imaging, cancer diagnosis, cancer

therapy evaluation, developmental

therapeutics, radiation, and

biometrics

Coordinates the scientific review of

extramural research before funding

and provides systematic surveillance

after awards are made

Directs research aimed at exploring

the causes of cancer, AIDS, and

related diseases
14

Office of Science Planning and

Assessment (OSPA)

http://planning.cancer.gov

Legislation and Congressional

Activities

www3.cancer.gov/legis

Office of Liaison Activities

www.la.cancer.gov

NCI Office of International

Affairs (OIA)

www.cancer.gov/oia

Advisory Boards and Groups

http://deainfo.nci.nih.gov/advisory/

boards.htm

Director’s Consumer Liaison

Group (DCLG)

www.la.cancer.gov/dclg.html

Develops and coordinates the NCI's

scientific planning and evaluation

activities

Information on current topics of

legislative interest, including

congressional committees, hearings,

and legislation

Communicates and cooperates with

the cancer advocacy community,

professional societies, and federal

agencies to promote common goals

by disseminating information,

seeking input and feedback, and

encouraging partnering and

collaboration

Coordinates the NCI’s worldwide

activities, including liaison with

foreign and international agencies

and cancer research efforts between

the United States and other

countries

Chartered federal advisory

committees that provide formal

advice and assistance on a broad

range of issues affecting NCI

policies and programs

Group that advises and makes

recommendations to the NCI

director from the consumer

advocate perspective on a wide

variety of issues, programs, and

research priorities

NCI ADVISORY GROUPS
15

Consumer Advocates in Research

and Related Activities (CARRA)

www.la.cancer.gov/CARRA

Working at NCI

www.cancer.gov/aboutnci/working

StarCatcher Training and

Employment Opportunities 

http://generalemployment.nci.nih.gov

Jobs @ NIH

www.jobs.nih.gov

Program that encourages people

affected by cancer to provide their

viewpoints to NCI staff for

incorporation into NCI programs

and activities

Employment, internship, fellowship,

and advocacy opportunities at the

NCI, plus policies and services for

employees

Information about NCI

postdoctoral fellowships,

internships, administrative, and

assistant/technician positions, and

an online application

Current employment opportunities

at the NIH

WORKING AT NCI
NIH Publication No. 06-5008

March 2006