On Jul. 10, 2017, the Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) Knight Cancer Institute was awarded the National Cancer Institute’s (NCI) premier status as a Comprehensive Cancer Center.

This award came on the heels of the successful completion of Phil and Penny Knight’s $1 billion fundraising challenge, the recruitment of a new director for its Cancer Early Detection Advanced Research Center, and the groundbreaking of a building dedicated to cancer research.

To garner the NCI’s top accolade, institutions are required to meet stringent criteria in three key areas: laboratory research, clinical research and population-based science. Specifically, a Comprehensive Cancer Center is required to demonstrate a proven aptitude in research that bridges these scientific areas, serve the broader population through cancer research, and integrate training and education of biomedical researchers and health care professionals to enhance its scientific mission.

Currently 48 institutions nationwide have earned this coveted designation, including: MD Anderson Cancer Center, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute of Harvard University, and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. The Knight Cancer Institute has been an NCI-designated center since 1997 and is the only NCI-designated cancer center in Oregon, but it now has advanced to the highest level of NCI designation.

The upgraded distinction comes as the result of a rigorous, months-long review that culminated in a site visit by cancer research leaders from across the U.S. Every five years, NCI-designated cancer centers apply for a Cancer Center Support Grant that provides essential funding to support infrastructure and create shared research resources. The Knight Cancer Institute experienced significant increases in NCI funding totals, swelling from $21 million in 2010 to the current $42.9 million.