We will support and conduct studies to increase our understanding of and ability to measure the environmental, behavioral, sociocultural, and economic influences that affect the quality of cancer care, survivorship, and health disparities.

It is critically important to advance a comprehensive, interdisciplinary research agenda to promote high standards of care, support reduction of the adverse effects of cancer diagnosis and treatment, and improve outcomes for all patients. Outcomes research describes, interprets, and predicts the impact of various influences on "final" endpoints that matter to decision makers, including patients, providers, private payers, government agencies, accrediting organizations, and society at large. These influences affect the extent to which public health programs and healthcare providers adopt recommended interventions, how successful the interventions are in addressing public health concerns, and how well patients adhere to provider recommendations. Outcomes may be measured in terms of survival, health-related quality of life, satisfaction with care, the performance of the health care system, and the economic burden on individuals or society.

NCI will support and conduct research to improve outcome measurement, expand access to data, and understand the influences on cancer outcomes and access to care. We also need to understand the barriers to dissemination and adoption of proven interventions in prevention, detection, diagnosis, and treatment. We must determine the best approaches to increase the use of evidence-based cancer interventions in public health and clinical practice and how best to use knowledge gained from research results to influence cancer policies.

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