MDAnderson.org
About MD Anderson Cancer Center
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, which marked its 70th anniversary in 2011, is one of the world’s most-respected centers devoted exclusively to cancer patient care, research, education and prevention. It is located in central Houston on the sprawling campus of the Texas Medical Center.
MD Anderson was created in 1941 as a part of The University of Texas System. The institution is one of the nation’s original three comprehensive cancer centers designated by the National Cancer Act of 1971 and is one of 40 National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer centers today.
In 2011, U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Hospitals” survey ranked MD Anderson as the top hospital in the nation for cancer care. It has achieved the top ranking eight times in the past 10 years and has ranked as one of the top two hospitals for cancer care since the magazine began its annual survey in 1990.
Thanks to generous donors, MD Anderson concluded its $1.2 billion goal for Making Cancer History®: The Campaign to Transform Cancer Care. The campaign centerpiece is a group of virtual institutes that will bring together people from diverse departments and disciplines in programs and centers of excellence that focus on the continuum of cancer care, from prevention to survivorship.
Patient Care
Since 1944, nearly 900,000 patients have turned to MD Anderson for cancer care in the form of surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, immunotherapy, or combinations of these and other treatments. This multidisciplinary approach to treating cancer was pioneered at MD Anderson. Because its experts focus on cancer, they’re renowned for their ability to treat all types of cancer, including rare or uncommon diseases.
During Fiscal Year 2010, MD Anderson provided cancer care for about 105,000 patients. Of those, more than 32,000 were new patients. About one-third of patients come to Houston from outside Texas, seeking the knowledge-based care that has made MD Anderson so widely respected. There were nearly 10,000 registrants on clinical trials exploring novel therapies and diagnostic tests in FY10, making it the largest such program in the nation.
The new Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Institute for Personalized Cancer Therapy focuses on using the latest advances in genetic testing to develop safer, more effective treatments for patients on a case-by-case basis. This research center encompasses all of MD Anderson’s clinical divisions and departments.
Helping MD Anderson lead the way in developing an improved cancer care model is the new Institute for Cancer Care Excellence, which studies and determines the best ways to deliver care that is safe, timely, efficient, effective, equitable and patient-centered.
MD Anderson was reaccredited in 2011 by the Joint Commission, a nonprofit hospital accreditation group. In 2010, MD Anderson was redesignated with Magnet Nursing Services Recognition from the American Nurses Credentialing Center, an honor it first received in 2001.
Research
At MD Anderson, important scientific knowledge gained in the laboratory is rapidly translated to clinical care. In FY10, the institution invested more than $547 million in research, an increase of about 34% in the past five years. MD Anderson ranks first in the number of research grants awarded and total amount of grant funds given by the NCI. The institution holds 12 NCI Specialized Programs of Research Excellence (SPORE) grants: brain, breast, genitourinary, head and neck, leukemia, lung, lymphoma, melanoma, myeloma, ovarian, prostate and uterine. Overall, the research program is considered one of the most productive efforts in the world aimed solely at cancer.
MD Anderson has expanded its research endeavors with the creation of the McCombs Institute for the Early Detection and Treatment of Cancer on the institution’s South Campus. The institute comprises seven translational research centers focused on genomics, proteomics, screening, diagnostic imaging and drug development: the Cancer Metastasis Research Center, Center for Cancer Immunology Research, Kleberg Center for Molecular Markers, Proton Therapy Center, Center for Advanced Biomedical Imaging Research, Center for Targeted Therapy and Center for RNA Interference and Non-Coding RNAs.
In the new Institute for Basic Science, researchers are working to better understand the makeup of healthy human cells, how they function under normal conditions and what happens when cancer develops. This knowledge will feed directly into clinical research, prevention, diagnosis and treatment.
Education
In FY10, more than 6,900 trainees, including physicians, scientists, nurses and allied health professionals, took part in MD Anderson educational programs. The institution’s School of Health Professions offers bachelor's degrees in eight allied health disciplines.
More than 1,100 clinical residents and fellows come to MD Anderson each year to receive specialized training in the investigation and treatment of cancer. About 600 graduate students are working on advanced degrees at the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, which MD Anderson operates with The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. More than 1,600 research fellows are being trained in MD Anderson's laboratories.
Thousands more participate in continuing education and distance learning opportunities sponsored by MD Anderson, sharing knowledge around the globe. The institution also provides public education programs to teach healthy people about cancer symptoms and risk factors, offering information that can help them make critical health care decisions.
Prevention
Recognizing that prevention is the best way to eliminate the threat of cancer, MD Anderson takes a multifaceted approach. Expanded research efforts in epidemiology and behavioral science complement achievements made in clinical cancer prevention. Laboratory activities support developmental and practical applications of cancer prevention. One research program focuses on disparities in prevention and care among ethnic minorities and the medically underserved, which result in increased cancer incidence and deaths in some populations.
The Cancer Prevention Center provides cancer risk assessments, screening exams based on genetics, age and gender, personalized risk-reduction strategies, chemoprevention and nutrition counseling. The Behavioral Research Treatment Center provides a comprehensive tobacco cessation program through customized treatment plans that include counseling and nicotine replacement therapy.
The Duncan Family Institute for Cancer Prevention and Risk Assessment, established through a $35 million donation from the Dan L. Duncan Family Foundation, further enables MD Anderson to become the world’s premier center committed to cancer prevention research and practice. The Duncan gift helps train future generations of researchers and practitioners, and fosters a definitive resource for educating the public and health care professionals about the latest practices in cancer prevention.
Employment
MD Anderson employs more than 18,000 people, including more than 1,500 faculty. A volunteer corps of more than 1,100 people supplements the workforce; these volunteers provided more than 195,000 hours of service in FY10, equal to 94 full-time employees. Faculty, staff and volunteers are dedicated to the core values of caring, integrity and discovery. Together they work toward fulfilling the MD Anderson mission of eliminating cancer as a major health threat.
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External Links
- Alexa: MDAnderson.org
