National Comprehensive Cancer Network

Celebrating nearly seven decades of Making Cancer History^®, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is located in Houston, Texas, on the sprawling campus of the Texas Medical Center . It is one of the world's most respected centers devoted exclusively to cancer patient care, research, education and prevention. MD Anderson Cancer Center was created in 1941 as a component of The University of Texas System. MD Anderson 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. MD Anderson has ranked among the nation's top two cancer hospitals in U.S. News & World Report's " America 's Best Hospitals" survey for 20 years, since the survey began in 1990. MD Anderson has ranked No. 1 six times in the past eight years, including 2008.

Patient Care

M.D. Anderson was accredited in 2008 by the Joint Commission, a nonprofit hospital accreditation group. In 2006, 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 FY09, the institution invested more than $510 million in research, an increase of about 49 percent in the past five years. MD Anderson ranks first in the number of research grants awarded and total amount of grants given by the NCI. MD Anderson holds 12 NCI Specialized Programs of Research Excellence grants: brain, breast, genitourinary, head and neck, leukemia, lung, lymphoma, melanoma, ovarian, pancreatic, prostate, and uterine. 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. The institute comprises seven translational research centers focused on genomics, proteomics, screening, diagnostic imaging and drug development. Located in the 116-acre University of Texas Research Park on the institution's South Campus, the McCombs Institute will house about 25 percent of MD Anderson's research activities.

Four programs in operation are the Proton Therapy Center , Cancer Metastasis Research Center, Center for Cancer Immunology Research and the Kleberg Center for Molecular Markers.

Education
In FY09, more than 300 students, including physicians, scientists, nurses and allied health professionals, took part in M.D. Anderson's educational programs. The institution's School of Health Professions offers bachelor's degrees in seven allied health disciplines. In addition, 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. More than 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. MD Anderson provides public education programs to teach healthy people about cancer symptoms and risk factors, offering information that one day might help them make critical health care decisions.

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center's Interpersonal Communication and Relationship Enhancement (I*CARE ) program provides online education designed to improve the communication among cancer patients, their families and their clinical team. For more information please visit the I*CARE website or view the program brochure.

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 medically underserved populations, 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, 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.

Human Resources
MD Anderson employs more than 17,000 people, including almost 1,500 faculty numbers. A volunteer corps of about 1,300 people supplements the workforce; these volunteers provide more than 200,000 hours of service each year, equal to 100 full-time employees. Faculty, staff members 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.

Facilities
With faculty and staff working in more than 30 buildings in the greater Houston area and in central Texas, MD Anderson is the largest freestanding cancer center in the world. The physical plant covers more than 11 million square feet, featuring the latest equipment and facilities to support growing needs in outpatient and inpatient care, research, prevention and education.

Construction projects include the addition of 12 floors that can accommodate more than 300 new inpatient beds in Alkek Hospital on the North Campus; two new research buildings on the South Campus that will house the Center for Advanced Biomedical Imaging Research and Center for Targeted Therapy as part of the McCombs Institute; and MD Anderson's first facility on its Mid Campus, a 25-story building to support current office space and future growth needs.

In addition to its main campus in the Texas Medical Center and two research campuses in Bastrop County, Texas, MD Anderson has developed a number of local, national and international affiliations:
Satellite care centers

• Greater Houston area: Bay Area (Nassau Bay), Bellaire, Fort Bend (Richmond), Katy, Sugar Land, The Woodlands
• Albuquerque, N.M.
• Istanbul, Turkey

Other

• MD Anderson Cancer Center-Orlando (Fla.)
• Centro Oncológico MD Anderson International España (Madrid, Spain)
• MD Anderson Banner Cancer Center (Gilbert, Ariz.) opening in 2011

For more information about MD Anderson, visit www.mdanderson.org or call 877.MDA.6789.

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