Cancer Programs Announces NCI Grant Award

For most solid tumors, high-quality surgery represents the greatest potential for cure. Many studies have explored variations in diagnostic and staging processes or adherence to adjuvant therapy guidelines, but relatively little attention has been paid to the potential differences in cancer surgery technical quality.

To address this gap, the ACS published the Operative Standards for Cancer Surgery manuals covering 15 disease sites with the intent of improving surgical quality and outcomes. The Commission on Cancer (CoC) implemented six of these standards in 2020 and expects its more than 1,400 accredited facilities to reach 80% adherence to these standards by the end of 2024.

A research team, led by co-Principal Investigators Lesly Dossett, MD, MPH, FACS (University of Michigan) and Daniel Boffa, MD, FACS (Yale University), was recently awarded R01 funding by the National Cancer Institute for their study entitled, “Implementation and Effectiveness of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) Operative Standards Program.” Dr. Dossett and Dr. Boffa will be joined by co-investigators Ronald Weigel, MD, FACS, Medical Director of ACS Cancer Programs, and Judy Boughey, MD, FACS, Chair of Breast and Melanoma Surgical Oncology at the Mayo Clinic. Working in collaboration with the ACS, this 5-year grant aims to (1) evaluate the implementation of the CoC Operative Standards across cancer and hospital types; (2) access guideline and organizational-level barriers and facilitators of program implementation; and (3) evaluate the impact of the CoC operative standards program on short-term cancer outcomes.