On Jul. 7, 2015, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) awarded the Siteman Cancer Center​ at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis an “exceptional” rating, based on a rigorous review of Siteman’s research programs. The rating is the highest possible by the NCI, the principal federal institute that funds cancer research.

Siteman, an NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, undergoes peer review every five years. Such centers are recognized by the NCI, part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), for their leadership, scientific merit, integration and the depth and breadth of clinical and research programs, including in cancer prevention.

Siteman earned its exceptional rating based on a January site visit by 26 researchers and administrators from academic cancer centers across the United States. During the visit, Washington University researchers and physicians presented their innovative research programs in genomics, cancer imaging, cancer prevention and disparities, immunology and immunotherapy, and early-phase clinical trials.

Established in 1999, Siteman has risen quickly to become a cancer center recognized as exceptional by its peers and the NCI. Siteman was named Missouri’s only NCI-designated Cancer Center in 2001 and the state’s only Comprehensive Cancer Center in 2005. The latter designation places Siteman among the top institutions in cancer prevention, research and treatment.