Emory cancer center earns national honor

Atlanta Business Chronicle - by Urvaksh Karkaria Staff Writer

Gov. Sonny Perdue told a standing-room only crowd at Emory Winship Cancer Institute Monday the center's freshly minted designation as a national cancer center is like the "Good Housekeeping seal of approval."

Emory Winship Cancer Institute's freshly minted designation as a national cancer center is like the "Good Housekeeping seal of approval," Gov. Sonny Perdue told a standing-room only crowd Monday.

"This is not a declaration or a distinction that's given lightly," Perdue said. "This marks an important milestone in our fight against cancer. This designation now means that Emory joins the ranks of the most elite cancer centers in the country."

Winship Cancer Institute received the coveted national cancer center designation after two decades of trying, Atlanta Business Chronicle first reported April 10.

Winship is the first in Georgia to get the gold-plated certification, which will open the spigot to millions of dollars in research funding and lure high-profile clinical trials and talent to the state.

Georgia has lagged behind many other Southeastern states by not having a designated cancer center. With the announcement, Emory joins an elite group of about 25 NCI national cancer centers nationwide. Several Southern states, including Alabama, Florida and South Carolina, have NCI cancer centers.

"Georgia's greatest infrastructure defect is now corrected," Bill Todd, CEO of the Georgia Cancer Coalition, said referring to designation.

With the national cancer center title under its belt, Emory plans to apply for NCI’s Comprehensive Cancer Center status in two years, a source said.

The national cancer center designation designation will bring $4.2 million in grant funding to Winship for the next three years. Perdue said.

The additional money will add to NIH cancer funding at Emory. which has more than tripled over the past six years, Emory University President James Wagner noted.

Emory would also be eligible for a larger pool of funding from federal and private sources, such as the American Cancer Society, Susan G. Komen for the Cure and the Department of Defense.

The cancer center designation will make Winship a talent magnet, too — attracting top researchers and oncologists.

Winship unsuccessfully applied for the designation in the mid-1990s.

It failed because the NCI did not feel the cancer center had enough basic science research capability at the time. Winship has since invested in expanding the research program, both in scope and manpower.

The NCI questioned Emory’s commitment for a cancer center because it did not have a stand-alone cancer facility. The agency noted Emory’s leadership, at the time, did not fully support the need for a NCI Cancer Center designation.

Since then, Emory has invested millions of dollars in the Winship Institute.