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Dear Colleagues,

It is with extraordinary pride we share the news that our UVA Cancer Center has been awarded Comprehensive Cancer Center designation effective February 1, 2022, by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), the largest funder of cancer research in the world. Centers who achieve this level of recognition must meet the most rigorous standards for innovative research, including leading-edge clinical trials.

The UVA Cancer Center has a long and storied history of success with nationally and internationally recognized research as well as differentiated clinical care that spans the Commonwealth and beyond. Because of these accomplishments, our center has been recognized as an NCI-designated cancer center for the past 34 years. As now a Comprehensive Cancer Center, UVA moves into an elite group of 52 of the most outstanding cancer programs in the nation and the only Comprehensive Cancer Center in the state of Virginia. To achieve this status, it was necessary to demonstrate:

• Additional strength in national recognition and leadership
• Enhanced depth and breadth of basic, clinical, and population research
• Enhanced outreach and education to our cancer center’s catchment area and community
• Transdisciplinary research that bridges multiple scientific areas evidenced by the center’s ability to take maximum advantage of research and innovation across Grounds

The application for Comprehensive Cancer Center designation required submission of a 1,300-page application, followed by a site visit from 14 distinguished scientists and physicians, including leaders of other NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers.

As the only Comprehensive Cancer Center in Virginia this recognition signifies our ability to deliver cancer prevention, new discoveries and innovative treatments to our patients leading to improved quality of life, care, and survival. For all of our patients, this means they benefit from the most exceptional, leading-edge cancer care available.

The UVA Cancer Center is comprised of 162 faculty from 25 departments amongst four UVA schools: Medicine, Nursing, Engineering and the College of Arts and Sciences. The UVA Cancer Center serves 3.2 million residents from a large catchment area inclusive of 87 counties throughout northern, central, southside and southwestern Virginia as well as West Virginia.

Our cancer center has grown tremendously over the past several years. Since 2014 our clinical volume has grown by over 50% with patients traveling great distances to gain access to our specialists. Over the last four years, funding for cancer research at UVA has increased 45%, totaling more than $30 million in 2020. During that same period, participation in clinical research at the UVA Cancer Center has increased by almost 500% with outreach throughout Virginia and our neighboring states.  

This achievement is exemplary of the excellence that UVA Health provides across all disciplines and of our recognition as one of the nation’s top academic health systems. Please join us in congratulating our UVA Cancer Center team for this remarkable achievement and for their determination in seeking this recognition. This is a pivotal accomplishment and we should all be proud.    

Sincerely,

K. Craig Kent, MD
Chief Executive Officer, UVA Health
Executive Vice President for Health Affairs, University of Virginia

Thomas P. Loughran, Jr., M.D.
Director, UVA Cancer Center