Organization

Information Products

Services for NCI's Divisions, Offices, and Centers

Services for the Cancer Community at Large

Collaborations

Contact Information

Background

The National Cancer Act of 1971 directed the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to "Collect, analyze, and disseminate all data useful in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer, including the establishment of an international cancer research data bank to collect, catalog, store, and disseminate insofar as feasible the results of cancer research undertaken in any country for the use of any person involved in cancer research in any country." Subsequent legislation widened the scope of NCI's communications activities beyond cancer researchers to include health professionals, cancer patients and their families, and the general public.

The Office of Communications (OC), located in the Office of the Director, is the coordination center for NCI's information dissemination activities, providing core communications services to the Institute and serving as NCI's primary resource for cancer-related information.

Within the Office of Communications (OC) are these sub-offices:

• Office of the Director
• Cancer Content Management
• Cancer Information Service
• Media Relations and Public Affairs
• Technology Strategy and Applications

A snapshot of each office and its components follows. Examples of the products and services available from the offices are provided in later sections of the OC Web site.

Office of the Director

• Leads OC staff and offices.
• Plans, executes, and evaluates communications activities within OC and NCI.
• Collaborates with consumer research and communications research experts across NCI to utilize evidence-based communications approaches.

The Office of the Director includes:

Operations Branch

• Directs and leads OC operations such as budget, space, human resources, contracts, A-76, general administration.

Communications Strategy and Program Branch

• Develops and coordinates messages.
• Plans communications strategies.
• Utilizes evidence-based communications research.
• Brokers OC services to NCI Divisions, Offices, and Centers.

NCI Cancer Bulletin Team

• Produces the NCI Cancer Bulletin.

Office of Cancer Content Management

This office oversees the development, publication, maintenance, and updating of the majority of cancer information products disseminated by OC. It also manages the clearance process for all OC cancer information products and provides clearance support for the rest of NCI. In addition, staff in this office represent OC in NCI's Enterprise Vocabulary Services (EVS) Project ¹ and have responsibility for curation of the clinical terminology in NCI Thesaurus and Metathesaurus.

Cancer Content Management includes three branches:

• The International Cancer Research Databank Branch (ICRDB) coordinates information management activities, including information collection and synthesis, editorial processes, and data exchange to produce NCI's Physician Data Query (PDQ®) ² comprehensive cancer information database. ICRDB also facilitates access to cancer information for NCI staff through an electronic library and other tools.
• The Cancer Publications Branch creates and maintains cancer content for NCI's Web site and a range of NCI print publications designed to reach a wide spectrum of NCI "customers," including patients, health professionals, researchers, and the general public.
• The Publications Support Branch guides, coordinates, and procures design and production services to create publications, audiovisuals, and other media used to communicate NCI information. This branch is also the central source for policy about proper use of the NCI logo.

Office of Cancer Information Service

This office administers NCI's Cancer Information Service (CIS) ³, a national network of 15 regional contracts located at cancer centers and universities. CIS serves the United States, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Pacific Islands.

• Responds to the public's questions about cancer via telephone in English and Spanish (1-800-4-CANCER), web chat or instant messaging (LiveHelp), e-mail, and written correspondence.
• Operates NCI's Smoking Quitline (1-877-44U-QUIT).
• Supports the telecommunication infrastructure for the DHHS National Network of Tobacco Cessation Quitlines, which routes calls to state-based quitline services through the 1-800-QUIT-NOW number.
• Provides smoking cessation counseling for states that do not operate a state-based quitline (currently 3 states and the District of Columbia).
• Oversees the CIS Partnership Program that collaborates with trusted local, regional, and national organizations to reach minority and medically underserved audiences and provides technical assistance to the cancer control efforts of the nation's states, tribes, and territories.
• Partners with behavioral and health communication researchers to develop and implement collaborative research studies to discover optimal cancer communication messages, channels, and strategies for the public.
• Manages the Public Inquiries Office (301-435-3848), which serves as NCI's public information office about NCI programs and activities.
• Manages CIS Central Support, which provides
  • Writing support
  • Publications ordering (through 1-800-4-CANCER) and distribution services
  • Web services (NCI Publications Locator, Partner Online Ordering, Publications Catalog, and CIS internet and intranet).

Office of Media Relations and Public Affairs

This office promotes the public's understanding of cancer research, programs, and NCI through relationships with journalists, opinion leaders, decision-makers, the scientific community, and organizations. The office includes two branches:

• The Media Relations Branch communicates research results and NCI priorities to the media and, ultimately, to the public. The Branch develops and distributes press-related materials to key media contacts, and hosts the NCI News Center ⁴ on the Web. It holds Science Writers' Seminars for health reporters and editors on various cancer-related topics of interest and publishes an online publication called BenchMarks ⁵, which expands on topics discussed at the seminars.
• The Public Affairs Branch advances the public face of NCI and reinforces NCI's programs, priorities, and messages with internal and external constituents. This branch manages and promotes the NCI Exhibit Program, Health Communications Internship Program, and NCI Event-Cal, a weekly calendar of scientific meetings and lectures. The branch is also coordinating the NCI Speakers Bureau, which will provide appropriate NCI experts for meetings and conferences.

Office of Technology Strategy and Applications

This office designs, develops, and implements innovative communications technology solutions that enable the OC and the Institute to effectively disseminate the most credible, current, and comprehensive cancer-related information to all audiences.

• Designs and develops Web sites and application systems for OC and NCI based on proven methodologies.
• Creates NCI Web standards and style guides to unify and strengthen NCI's online brand globally and applies them to www.cancer.gov and other Web sites under the NCI umbrella.
• Maintains and operates secure, reliable, and scalable infrastructure created for www.cancer.gov and other NCI Web-based projects and applications to ensure 24/7 availability.
• Researches and evaluates emerging technologies to implement the most promising solutions for maximizing access to cancer information for all NCI audiences.
• Designs, develops, and operates the software application systems for managing and distributing NCI's PDQ® database.

• NCI Cancer Bulletin ⁶ - Published weekly, the Bulletin provides authoritative news about the latest cancer research results and important NCI programs and initiatives; the Bulletin also includes special reports and regular features.

• NCI's Web site, www.cancer.gov - Winner of the prestigious Webby and FREDDY Awards, the NCI's Web site serves as a primary point of access for cancer-related information for all of NCI's constituents. View our Navigate the NCI ⁷ booklet to see short descriptions of some of the information and resources available on NCI's Web site.

• Physician Data Query (PDQ®) ² - NCI's comprehensive cancer information database, PDQ contains peer-reviewed information summaries about cancer treatment, screening, prevention, genetics, supportive care, and complementary and alternative medicine; a registry of more than 3,500 open and 15,000 closed clinical trials from around the world; and directories of physicians, genetics professionals, and organizations that provide cancer care. The International Cancer Research Databank Branch is responsible for managing PDQ.

• NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms ⁸ - This resource contains more than 4,000 cancer-related terms and is updated several times a month. Terms are also used to provide glossary support for patient-oriented information on NCI's Web site.

• NCI Drug Dictionary ⁹ - A dictionary that contains technical definitions, alternate names, and links to related information for approximately 700 agents that are being used in the treatment of patients with cancer or cancer-related conditions.

• NCI Thesaurus ¹⁰ - Produced in collaboration with the NCI Center for Bioinformatics (NCICB) ¹¹ as part of the Institute's Enterprise Vocabulary Services (EVS) ¹, NCI Thesaurus is a reference terminology resource that contains the working vocabulary used in NCI and a growing number of other biomedical data systems; it includes terminology related to clinical care, basic and translational research, and public information and administrative activities; OC has responsibility for the clinical and drug terminology in NCI Thesaurus.

• NCI Metathesaurus ¹² - Also produced in collaboration with NCICB as part of EVS, NCI Metathesaurus contains the NCI Thesaurus plus other standard reference terminologies required for interoperating systems with Cancer Centers, federal agencies, and other collaborators. NCI Metathesaurus includes most public-domain vocabularies from the National Library of Medicine's Unified Medical Language System (UMLS) Metathesaurus and other cancer-related vocabularies; OC is the principal content editor of NCI Metathesaurus.

• The Nation's Progress in Cancer Research ¹³ - The NCI's annual report, highlighting advances in cancer research that are moving the nation toward the elimination of suffering and death due to cancer.

• The NCI International Portfolio ¹⁴ - This portfolio provides an overview of the breadth and depth of NCI's international cancer control and research programs, as well as brief descriptions of NCI's international collaborations and research efforts.

• NCI Fact Sheet Collection ¹⁵ - Brief, reliable, and authoritative information for the general public about numerous cancer-related topics; NCI Fact Sheets are frequently updated based on the latest cancer research.

• What You Need To Know About Cancer series ¹⁶ - Publications for the general public about individual types of cancer, written in simple language and including information about symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment.

• Electronic Books, including:

  • Pink Book: Making Health Communications Programs Work ¹⁷ - NCI's planning guide for health communicators.
  • Theory at a Glance ¹⁸ - NCI's monograph for applying theory to health promotion practices.
  • Clear and Simple ¹⁹ - NCI's guide for developing publications for people with limited literacy skills.
  • Cancer and the Environment ²⁰ - An online publication that describes agents in the environment that may cause cancer and what individuals can do to lower their cancer risk.

• Understanding Cancer Series ²¹ - Graphic-rich tutorials about biomedical and science topics, for educational use by life science teachers, medical professionals, and the interested public.

• Visuals Online ²² - NCI's image database, containing general biomedical and science-related images, cancer-specific scientific and patient care-related images, and portraits of directors and staff of the National Cancer Institute.

• 2006 Office of Communications Annual Report ²³ - This report highlights the 2006 activities and accomplishments of NCI's Office of Communications and describes how its products and services support the Institute's strategic priorities.

• 2005 Office of Communications Annual Report ²⁴ - This report highlights the 2005 activities and accomplishments of NCI's Office of Communications and describes how its products and services support the Institute's strategic priorities.

• Communications Strategy Planning - Staff within the OC Office of the Director lead communications strategy and development for NCI. They work closely with OC offices as well as other Divisions, Offices, and Centers across NCI to determine communications objectives, audiences, messages, and strategies for important initiatives. Staff can help to identify channels and activities to reach particular audiences, and then evaluate the results of the communications activities undertaken to inform planning and future initiatives.

• Public Affairs Coordination - The Public Affairs Branch represents the public face of NCI and organizes outreach programs and activities to inform and educate the public about NCI priorities. The branch promotes, disseminates, and reinforces messages about NCI's programs and goals both internally and externally. Cancer-related information is shared through the nationally known NCI Exhibit Program; a new NCI Speakers Bureau; the NCI Event-Cal, which alerts staff about important cancer-related scientific meetings and conferences; the Health Communications Internship Program, which trains and recruits interns in cancer communications; and the management of NCI and OC events. Staff facilitate the flow of information within OC and across NCI through the OCUpdate newsletter, "This Week at NCI" meetings, and support for the Director's D-Brief messages.

• Publications Support - OC's Publications Support Branch provides quality design and printing services; consulting services for printing, graphic design, and publications layout; and guidance on proper use of the NCI logo and the PDQ trademark.

• Audio/Visual and Photography Services - OC provides photography, videography, and online visuals to Divisions, Offices, and Centers throughout NCI. Staff are available to photograph and videotape special events and to create videos, from scripting through production.

• Web Site Design and Development - The Office of Technology Strategy and Applications (OTSA) serves as the design and development resource for NCI Web sites, including www.cancer.gov. OTSA is responsible for designing, developing, and maintaining the front-end interfaces and back-end infrastructures of existing and emerging technologies used to serve www.cancer.gov and other NCI content.

• Exhibits Program ²⁵ - This program is a means for the Institute to have a visible presence at a variety of professional meetings. NCI exhibits are designed to inform basic and clinical cancer researchers and other health professionals about NCI programs, products, and services as well as to receive feedback from targeted audiences.

• Library Services - The OC Library Online (LION) team supports the NCI Office of the Director and other areas of the Institute with news alerting services, literature research, document retrieval, and document digitization services. OC's library services and resources are available through the LION system on the NCI intranet.

• Clearance - The NCI Clearance Office provides clearance support for NCI's print and Web-based publications, ensuring the Institute's disseminations meet NIH and DHHS clearance requirements. The Clearance Office also serves as the NCI's point-of-contact for peer review requirements specified under the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) Guidelines for Ensuring and Maximizing the Quality, Objectivity, Utility, and Integrity of Information Disseminated by Federal Agencies (also known as the OMB Information Quality Bulletin for Peer Review ²⁶).

• NCI Publications Locator ²⁷ - An online system for finding, viewing, and ordering NCI reports, publications, and other materials. Items can be retrieved by searching the system by topic, audience, language, and other categories. A catalog of available items, updated daily, can be printed for off-line use.

• News Center ⁴ - Communicates research results and NCI priorities through news releases, fact sheets, B roll film footage, and other media. The Media Relations Branch, which maintains the News Center, also assists journalists in a variety of ways, including guiding them to the cancer information they need; arranging interviews with NCI scientists; and producing educational opportunities such as science writer seminars and issues of the online publication, BenchMarks ⁵.

• Cancer Information Service ³ (CIS) - Provides the latest and most accurate cancer information to patients, their families, the public, and health professionals through a network of regional offices ²⁸ in the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Pacific Islands; the CIS provides personalized, confidential responses to specific questions about cancer.

  • By telephone: U.S. residents may call the CIS toll free at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237). CIS information specialists answer calls Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. local time, in English or Spanish. Callers with TTY equipment may call 1-800-332-8615. Callers also have the option of listening to recorded information about cancer 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
  • Online: CIS information specialists also offer online assistance in English Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. Eastern Time through the LiveHelp ²⁹ link on NCI's www.cancer.gov Web site.

• Tobacco Cessation Services - Managed by the CIS, provides assistance to smokers who want to quit:

  • By telephone: U.S residents may call NCI's Smoking Quitline toll free at 1-877-44U-QUIT between 9:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. local time. Information specialists are available to answer smoking-related questions in English or Spanish.
  • Online: Information Specialists also offer online assistance to smokers in English Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. Eastern Time through the LiveHelp ²⁹ link on NCI's www.cancer.gov Web site and the Smokefree.gov ³⁰ Web site.

• Public Inquiries Office - Part of the CIS, the Public Inquiries Office:

  • Responds to telephone, written, and e-mail inquiries about NCI's programs and activities.
  • Prepares correspondence and other materials in response to inquiries referred from the NIH and DHHS.
  • Helps prepare fact sheets to respond to the information needs of patients and the public.
  • Contact Information:
    NCI Public Inquiries Office
    6116 Executive Blvd.
    Room 3036A, MSC 8322
    Bethesda, Md. 20892-8322
    (deliveries: Rockville, Md. 20852)
    301-435-3848
    301-402-0555 (fax)

Programs within the Office of Communications are involved in several collaborations and partnerships that allow NCI to share communications resources and expertise with the larger cancer research, service, and advocacy communities. A few examples of these activities follow.

• Partnerships between the CIS regional offices and local, state, and regional organizations are formed to design, implement, and evaluate evidence-based cancer education projects to reach minority and medically underserved populations.

• With partners such as the M.D. Anderson Community Clinical Oncology Program and chapters of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, OC staff conducted training sessions about the clinical trial process and NCI resources.

• The CIS network participates in collaborative research studies with health communication researchers.

• Collaborations with the Food and Drug Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs, National Library of Medicine, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and others are focused on sharing and harmonizing terminologies for drugs, clinical research, and cancer incidence and prevention. A wide variety of projects are ongoing to link and integrate different biomedical terminologies.

• OC staff are providing content and technical guidance to France's new Institut National du Cancer for the development of a French national cancer clinical trials registry.

• OC staff are leading the Clinical Data Interchange Standards Consortium (CDISC) Subgroup on External Registries in efforts to develop specifications for a standard format for data submission to registries such as PDQ and ClinicalTrials.gov. The aim is to facilitate direct submission of information by researchers and institutions, making use of clinical trial management systems where possible.

• Service on the National Partnership for Comprehensive Cancer Control Core Committee and as faculty and facilitators at regional Comprehensive Cancer Control Leadership Institutes is extending NCI's reach into the community.

• OC staff have a leadership role in the International Cancer Information Service Group to help cancer organizations worldwide expand their cancer information services.

• Collaborations on television productions such as ABC News' Quit to Live series and news segments for network and public news programs are helping NCI to establish connections with media outlets and reach new audiences with important cancer information.

How to reach the Office of Communications

Phone: 301-451-6879
Fax: 301-480-0518
E-mail: ncioc@mail.nih.gov
Office of Communications
National Cancer Institute
Building 31, Room 10A31
Bethesda, Md. 20892