Decatur Memorial Hospital Cancer Care Institute Participates in a $4.5 Million Research Grant

Oct. 27, 2005

Decatur, Ill…Central Illinois patients and families will benefit from advanced cancer prevention and treatment studies as a result of a $4.5 million grant, awarded to the Central Illinois Community Clinical Oncology Program (CICCOP) over the next five years. Decatur Memorial Hospital Cancer Care Institute will receive a large portion of this grant for research in Decatur and surrounding communities. The first year of the five years of renewed funding from the National Cancer Institute will be $928,297 and will be divided between the two components of the CICCOP; Decatur Memorial Hospital and Memorial Medical Center in Springfield.

In addition to the two component institutions, the CICCOP has affiliations with Cancer Care Specialists of Central Illinois in Decatur and Effingham, the Springfield Clinic, the Central Illinois Hematology Oncology Center, the SIU School of Medicine, and Sherman Hospital, Elgin, Illinois.

This grant award allows CICCOP to bring research trials with exciting and innovating cancer treatments and new approaches to cancer prevention to patients living in 42 counties in Central, Southern and Northeast Illinois at no cost to Illinois Taxpayers. The CICCOP has enabled more than 4,060 people to participate in cancer treatment and prevention studies since it was founded in 1987.

In 1992 medical oncologist, James L. Wade, III, M.D. of Decatur, became principal investigator of the CICCOP. Under his leadership, the organization has continued to grow, add new investigators, and expand to both rural and urban communities alike. The service area now includes 3,267,617 people living in 23,672 square miles.

"The CICCOP goal, our goal, is to reduce the cancer burden and improve quality of life through research," says Dr. Wade. "Our outstanding track record of success, the broad coalition of primary care physicians, nurses, patients and their families, and the dedication of the administrations of DMH and MMC have made our program one of the best models of community cancer research in the nation."

Specific CICCOP goals for our Central Illinois community are to:

1. Stimulate quality care by ensuring access to National Cancer Institute (NCI) sponsored cancer treatment and prevention studies to people living in 42 Illinois counties.
2. Benefit the care of patients by collaborating with physician investigators, specialty and primary care physicians, nurses and clinical research staff and research bases to provide a wide range of cancer research protocols in the CICCOP community.
3. Maintain a consortium of quality institutions and physician investigators committed to furthering prevention and treatment through research.
4. Expand access of state of the art prevention and treatment studies to underserved populations of our service area.
5. Expand CICCOP studies to other Illinois communities, while maintaining the highest quality of research.

Central Illinois Community Clinical Oncology Program (CICCOP) received a $928,297 grant to provide the people in the local communities with access to state-of-the-art cancer prevention and treatment studies available through the National Cancer Institute.

CICCOP components include Decatur Memorial Hospital, the applicant organization and home of the CICCOP office; and Memorial Medical Center, Springfield. Other relevant statistics include:

• This grant, for 2005-2009, specifically totals $4,859,798. The 2005-2006 fiscal year grant award totals $928,297, split between the component institutions. Remaining funds will be split annually for the duration of the grant.
• The CICCOP ranks among the top national sites for accrual and quality.
• The CICCOP offers a variety of state of the art prevention and treatment studies, relating to many cancer types and sites.
• As of 2005, the end of this granting period, the CICCOP will have received nearly $11 million in funding from the National Cancer Institute.
• CICCOP has contributed significantly to important research that has translated into improved cures for many common cancers such as breast, colon, lung, prostate and lymphoma.
• To find out more about a specific cancer study call 876-6620.

Sherman Hospital, Elgin Illinois participates as an affiliate institution with the CICCOP. In addition the following are affiliated with the CICCOP:

• Cancer Care Specialists of Central Illinois, Decatur Illinois
• Springfield Clinic, Springfield Illinois
• Central Illinois Hematology Oncology Center of Springfield, Springfield Illinois
• SIU School of Medicine

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