The Metro-Minnesota Community Clinical Oncology (MMCCOP) program has a long-standing history which clearly demonstrates the success of the consortium as demonstrated by the both the ongoing commitment of the original consortium members and the growth of the consortium from 1979 through 2009. The MMCCOP consortium represents an established community program base which began in 1979 through its NCI-funded Community Hospital Cancer Program (CHCP) Award. This program would have a major impact on the way that cancer care is delivered in the community and provided the cornerstone for this CCOP initiative. This same consortium applied for and received the initial Community Clinical Oncology Program (CCOP) grant from the NCI in 1983, and has received subsequent CCOP grants since that time in 1987, 1990, 1995, and 2000 and 2005. Currently, the MMCCOP consortium represents twelve hospital and clinics with a common approach and established mechanisms for identifying, enrolling and following participants on NCI sponsored treatment, cancer prevention and cancer control protocols. The health market In the MMCCOP community remains extremely competitive and is in constant change as a result of mergers and Minnesota's healthcare reform. Despite this changing environment, the MMCCOP hospitals and associated staff continue to collaborate and support the added time and expense Involved In clinical research trials. Their level of support has not been cut back, and In fact has increased, during a time when many other projects within the hospitals are being reduced or eliminated. This program incorporates a substantial segment of the practicing physician community, and has provided a basis for communications between the practicing oncologists, their hospital administrations, and other health professionals in this consortium for the past twenty-five years. Combined, the consortium members see an average of nearly 12,000 new analytic cancer patients per year. Currently, there are 110 Investigators, representing medical, radiation and surgical oncology Including neuro-surgery, thoracic surgery and gynecologic oncology, and hematology, urology, oncology, neurology, ENT, family practice and Internal medicine. The history of MMCCOP Research Base Affiliations and proactive approach to expanding access to NCI sponsored studies supports the ability to achieve and maintain the NCI goals for the CCOP Initiative. MMCCOP intends to sustain a region wide community consortium which provides the community with the most recent advances in cancer prevention, treatment and symptom management. This will be accomplished through continued affiliations with CTSU, ECOG, NCCTG, GOG, MD Anderson, NSABP, RTOG, URCC and CCCWFU, the expansion of the current MMCCOP data management and communication system to increase the number and level of participation of the investigators In accrual, program operations and research base activities, implementation of new strategies to improve access and participation of minority and underserved groups, and increase the professional and lay community awareness of the CCOP and benefits of clinical cancer trials. In addition, all member and affiliate institutions of both Metro-MN CCOP and MN CGOP research programs are members of the Institutional Review Board for the Community Oncology Programs, administered by Park Nicollet Institute. The application is submitted as MMCCOP completes Grant Year 26 with one of most successful years since initiation of this consortium program. During the most recent NCI-Funded grant (6/05-5/09), 242 credits (235 patients) were accrued to NCI- approved treatment studies and 372.8 credits (396 new patients and follow-up of 370 participants) were accrued to approved cancer control protocols. MMCCCOP has demonstrated the ability to enter an increasing number of patients on protocol each year and proposes to accrue a total of 240 credits to Treatment studies and 350 Cancer Control credits in the first year of this award with the goal of continually exceeding the NCI requirements for both types of studies.
The Metro Minnesota Community Clinical Oncology Program (MMCCOP) is a research program sponsored by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to provide people in our community access to the newest therapy available for cancer treatment, symptom management and cancer prevention. Since Its inception in 1983, MMCCOP has linked community cancer specialists, primary care physicians and other health care professionals to the NCI-supported Cooperative Groups to conduct NCI-approved treatment, chemoprevention, symptom management and quality of life clinical trials (research studies).
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