{"id":28542,"date":"2022-12-19T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-12-19T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cancer.gov\/news-events\/cancer-currents-blog\/2022\/nci-cancer-control-opportunities-for-progress"},"modified":"2024-11-03T15:13:10","modified_gmt":"2024-11-03T15:13:10","slug":"reducing-the-cancer-burden-future-directions-for-ncis-cancer-control-research","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/reducing-the-cancer-burden-future-directions-for-ncis-cancer-control-research\/","title":{"rendered":"Reducing the Cancer Burden: Future Directions for NCI’s Cancer Control Research"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Focusing on health equity, a research area of opportunity identified by NCI’s Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences, involves better understanding social determinants of health and addressing barriers to improved health experienced by different populations.<\/p>\n

Credit: National Cancer Institute<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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Katrina Goddard, Ph.D., joined NCI in October 2021 as director of the Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences (DCCPS). Dr. Goddard is a genetic epidemiologist who has studied the use of genomic information to benefit public health, including incorporating genetic testing and other genomic technologies into patient care. Before coming to NCI, she was a distinguished investigator and director of the Department of Translational and Applied Genomics at the Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research in Portland, Oregon. <\/p>\n

To mark her first year at NCI, Dr. Goddard discusses future directions for DCCPS and her overall priorities for the division. These future directions and priorities are outlined in the division\u2019s newly released 2022 Overview and Highlights report<\/a>, which also provides snapshots of the division\u2019s progress over the past year.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Q: What exactly is cancer control research?<\/h2>\n

Cancer control research studies ways to reduce the burden of cancer, from cancer prevention all the way through improving the quality of life<\/a> for survivors.  <\/p>\n

Q: Your background is in genetics and statistics. How did you get interested in public health research?<\/h2>\n

Both when I was in graduate school and when I was first starting my career as a faculty member, at Case Western Reserve University, I studied genes<\/a> that contribute to people\u2019s risk of developing certain conditions, such as prostate cancer, early-onset Alzheimer\u2019s disease, and Werner syndrome<\/a>. It was an incredibly exciting time, when the technology for genomic research had just started to take off and the human genome<\/a> had not yet been completely sequenced. <\/p>\n

If you fast forward about 10 years after those discoveries were made, it became clear to me and other researchers that we needed more research to understand how to use this genetic information to achieve the full potential of this new knowledge to have an impact on people’s lives. So, I started getting interested in what would be needed to move these discoveries into clinical practice.<\/p>\n

Q: What do you see as DCCPS\u2019s unique role? How does the division\u2019s work fit into the bigger picture of cancer research?<\/h2>\n

DCCPS is a bridge to population health within NCI. Some of the work that we do is in developing new approaches to reduce the burden of cancer in the population. Within DCCPS, we have a strong program in behavioral research, which includes studies of tobacco control, obesity, alcohol use, and other lifestyle factors that have an impact on cancer risk. <\/p>\n

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Katrina Goddard, Ph.D., Director, Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences<\/p>\n

Credit: National Cancer Institute<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Our surveillance<\/a> research program is critical to understanding patterns of cancer incidence<\/a> and mortality and how these change over time and in different population groups. This helps us to monitor progress in reducing the burden of cancer and understand new concerning trends, such as the increasing mortality from uterine cancer and increasing incidence of early-onset cancers such as colorectal cancer<\/a>, that need greater emphasis and research. <\/p>\n

The epidemiology<\/a> research program focuses on identifying novel genetic and environmental factors that increase risk for cancer, predict prognosis or disease progression, or alter quality of life for cancer survivors.<\/p>\n

We also support the translation<\/a> of preventive strategies or treatments that are developed in other parts of NCI so that more people can benefit from these discoveries or inventions. For example, we study approaches that could enable more people to receive HPV<\/a> vaccines. These vaccines can prevent cervical cancer and certain other types of cancer. <\/p>\n

DCCPS has also done a lot of work to better understand how we can improve the use of preventive services, including cancer screening.<\/p>\n

Q: Where do you see future opportunities for the division\u2019s efforts in cancer control?<\/h2>\n

We want to ensure that we’re building on the strong foundation of research that DCCPS has achieved since it was established 25 years ago. Over the past year, we gathered input from the research community and other partners to identify six areas of opportunity for the division.<\/p>\n