With an eye on improving survival rates and the quality of care for cancer patients, the Canada Foundation for Innovation has awarded the NCIC Clinical Trials Group (NCIC CTG) $3.8 million as part of its Major Science Initiatives.

The funding provides infrastructure support to the NCIC CTG operations and statistics office at Queen’s University.

“We are grateful CFI has pledged its support for our mission of conducting important clinical trials that allow cancer patients from across the country to access some of the most cutting-edge cancer treatments available,” says NCIC CTG director Janet Dancey.

The objective of the funding is to provide CFI funded, state-of-the-art research facilities, enabling researchers to undertake world-class research and technology development. The funding also provides governance and management oversight of these facilities.

“We undoubtedly have all been touched, one way or another, by cancer and are well aware of the impact it has on our lives and the lives of others,” says Steven Liss, Vice-Principal (Research). “The advances in prevention, diagnostics and treatment have been truly remarkable, but there is still much to do. This support from CFI will allow the NCIC Clinical Trials Group at Queen's University to provide the leadership and platform to further their critical role in advancing and implementing new approaches to diagnostics, clinical interventions and new treatments for cancer patients.”

The NCIC CTG possesses expertise and infrastructure to conduct national and international multicentre phase I-III cancer clinical trials aimed at improving the survival and quality of life of cancer patients. The funding will support cancer investigators across the country and provide them access to novel and comprehensive information technology, expertise in regulatory, ethics, safety, and on-site monitoring requirements necessary to ensure trials are compliant with Health Canada regulations.

Since its establishment in 1980, the NCIC CTG has conducted 492 trials enrolling more than 77,000 patients. The trials have led to the development and adoption of numerous cancer therapies that have improved the survival and quality of life for cancer patients and delivered a tremendous benefit to thousands of Canadians.

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The NCIC CTG, a national research program of the Canadian Cancer Society, is the only Canadian co-operative cancer trials group conducting the entire range of cancer trials from early phase (e.g. phase I-II) studies to large international randomized controlled (e.g. phase III) trials across all cancer types. Its primary mission is to assess the effectiveness of interventions to prevent the development of cancer or improve the care of those patients who develop cancer.