Cancer Institute Gets National Recognition

Georgia is on the cutting edge of cancer treatment and prevention-- that's according to the National Cancer Institute.

Governor Sonny Perdue announced this morning Emory’s Winship Cancer Institute has earned the NCI center of excellence designation.

"Thirty-seven thousand people that sometime in the next year in Georgia will hear those dreaded words I’m sorry to tell you this but you have cancer," said Governor Perdue. "Fortunately though because places like the Winship Center it doesn’t have the implication or lack of hope it once had. Those 37,000 people are the bigger winners in today's announcement."

The designation also translates into $4.2 million in grant funding for the next two years, and officials say with the recognition, the center will attract top cancer researchers throughout the world.

The state had a part in Emory’s success… it matches money from the private sector.

The Winship Cancer Institute in Atlanta researches cancer treatment and prevention, and provides state of the art patient care to Georgians.

Columbus hospital joins nat'l cancer program

The John B. Amos Cancer Center is to take part a national pilot program to bring advanced cancer care to US communities.

The Columbus facility will partner with Savannah's St. Joseph's/Candler Health System in Savannah for the three-year program. Both will serve as pilot sites for the National Cancer Institute's Community Cancer Centers program:

"The National Cancer Institute Community Cancer Centers Program (NCCCP) is designed to encourage the collaboration of private-practice medical, surgical, and radiation oncologists -- with close links to NCI research and to the network of 63 NCI-designated Cancer Centers principally based at large research universities."

The facilities will provide cancer data from Georgia's southwestern region, according to the Ledger-Enquirer newspaper.

NCCCP: http://www.cancer.gov/newscenter/pressreleases/NCCCPpilot