cancer and the social sciences

Chicago Cancer Research Center is committed to a comprehensive approach to curing cancer by bringing research from the “bench” to the “trench”.  Epidemiologic research shows that more than 60% of cancer could be prevented through the application of existing knowledge on behavioral risk factors for cancer. This information reflects the multi-faceted dimensions of cancer research and the magnitude of the potential to impact the way we prevent, detect and control cancer in the future.  By examining the critical role that health behaviors play in the effectiveness of screening and treatment interventions, we will come closer to understanding how best to use these tools to improve health outcomes.

This program will be organic in nature, bringing faculty together with local resources in unique ways, sparking the momentum of a cohesive effort to enhance the outcomes of interventions to prevent and treat cancer while building on institutional strengths and geographic proximity of Chicago’s Southside neighborhoods. The proposed Program in Cancer and the Social Sciences will draw on University of Chicago faculty in the Department of Medicine (Hematology/Oncology, Family Medicine, Psychology, General Internal Medicine, and Geriatrics), the Department of Psychiatry, the Health Studies Department, the MacLean Center for Medical Ethics, the School of Social Service Administration, the Graduate School of Public Policy, the Institute of Mind and Biology, the Committee on Genetics, and the Committee on Clinical Pharmacology. University of Chicago faculty work with the Cancer Research Center and the National Cancer Institute to pursue research in cancer and aging, health disparities, quality of life, access to care, tobacco control, psychosocial factors and health services outcomes. Recently, University of Chicago faculty have again made major contributions in this area, paving the way for a program that both advances methods and applies them to important clinical and policy issues.

Establishment of the Program in Cancer and the Social Sciences would support further growth of this work by providing infrastructure for collaborative, scholarly efforts including funded research projects and a process by which investigators will share data and support one another. Grant funding for work in this area is available from the Federal sources such as NIH, AHRQ, and the CDC, and through non-Federal sources, including both private foundations and pharmaceutical manufacturers, all of whom can be instrumental in shaping the Program’s direction.

For more information about this program contact David Meltzer.

Program Faculty