The primary goal of the Cancer Communication Research Center [CCRC] is to identify and describe optimal communication structures and processes in organizations that facilitate patient-centered communication in cancer care.  We are pursuing this goal across the cancer continuum – from prevention to early detection, diagnosis, treatment, life after cancer to end of life – and across types – from breast, cervix, colorectal, lung, prostate, and other cancers.  We blend this diversity of points in the cancer continuum and types of cancer with a singular focus on clinical settings and the communicative encounters that define the experiences of patients and their families and the team-based and organized responses for producing superior health outcomes.

The Center also strives to employ proven evaluative frameworks and concepts from communication, dissemination, and implementation research to heighten the external validity and diffusion potential of cancer communication interventions in clinical settings.  The specific aims are:

1. To study the communicative relationships between patients and providers and among healthcare team members involved in cancer care.
2. To test interventions from improving patient-provider communication in cancer care.
3. To demonstrate how clinical systems and processes of care can facilitate the replication and spread of evidence-based patient-centered communication practices, programs, and policies in cancer care.

These aims are specifically tied to the two full research projects, two developmental projects, and the research efforts of our two substantive cores.  As new projects are funded within the Center, the aims will expand accordingly.