News from the Director

In this issue of Crossroads we take an in-depth look at our new Integrated Multidisciplinary Clinical Care Program (IMCCP). The purpose of this program is to provide high-quality patient- and family-friendly service to the public served by the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center.            

The Cancer Center is unique in two distinct ways. First, we are the only institution in Alabama that has cancer specialists who, in many cases, focus only on a single type of cancer. Second, we have a breadth and depth of cutting-edge research options for patients that are unmatched in the region.            

The IMCCP is designed to match these qualities with service that welcomes and supports patients and their families. Funded by the UAB Health System, the IMCCP has five components: patient care coordinators for each cancer specialty unit, Cancer Center ambassadors to provide information and support for patients, a patient navigator program to assist low-resource patients, an emergency access clinic for after-hours care, and a research referral unit for clinical trial recruitment. The cover story provides more details about this program and how it will benefit patients.            

In addition, this issue contains an in-depth look at our advanced research to understand metastasis, the mechanism by which cancer spreads from its primary location to distant sites. If we can understand this complex process, we could likely prevent deaths from cancer.            

We continue to be excited about the high-quality, nationally recognized research done at our Cancer Center and look forward to the full implementation of our IMCCP in the coming year.  

Edward Partridge, M.D.
Director and Evalina B. Spencer Chair in Oncology