UCDCCC NCTN UG1 PROGRAM

ABSTRACT As the only NCI-designated cancer center for inland Northern California’s approximately 5 million people, the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center (UCDCCC) provides both primary cancer care to a large and growing population and serves as the tertiary referral center for specialty cancer care for the region. For this extension application as a NCTN Network Lead Academic Participating Site, led by Drs. David R Gandara, MD, and Richard K Valicenti, MD, UCDCCC will continue to leverage an already established multidisciplinary team of cancer investigators from medical oncology, radiation oncology, surgical specialties, molecular biology/genomics, pathology, radiology, biostatistics, nursing, and clinical research support to provide clinical trials expertise, scientific and administrative leadership and accrual in NCTN studies across a broad range of tumor types and throughout the NCTN group network. UCDCCC and its faculty have a longstanding and proven track record of impactful contribution to NCI-sponsored clinical trials activities, as well as to NCI-related steering committees and initiatives, such as the Lung MAP public-private partnership. This extension will provide the resources to not only continue these efforts, but to increase both the scope and reach of participation, including integrating additional researchers and providing career development opportunities for new faculty and junior investigators as well as community affiliate health care professionals. With an already strong track record in translational and clinical research leadership for NCTN, UCDCCC is poised to exploit unique institutional strengths in serving as a laboratory resource for clinical trials and contributing to hypothesis-driven clinical research. Based on almost three decades of serving as the clinical trials “hub” for accrual to NCI sponsored studies throughout North-Central California, this NCTN UG1 extension provides additional opportunities for UCDCCC to both increase main site accrual and to extend access to NCTN trials into the community through the UCDCCC Cancer Care Network and affiliate sites, which include substantial underserved, rural and minority patient populations. In summary, UCDCCC represents an interdisciplinary organizational and leadership structure linked to a clinical trials program that has proven to be impactful and ensures robust accrual to NCTN trials. This UCDCCC UG1 program, pursued by an already well-established and accomplished multidisciplinary clinical research team, will continue to provide scientific and administrative leadership to NCTN, while also ensuring robust accrual and access to NCTN trials throughout the North- Central California community. Through this effort, UCDCCC will provide an impactful contribution to NCTN's goal for improving human health through the quality completion of large innovative clinical trials across a wide range of tumor types.