Cancer Prevention Science Blog

A research blog from the NCI Division of Cancer Prevention

Due to restructuring and reductions in force at the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the DCP Cancer Prevention Science blog will no longer be published. Thank you very much for your support over the years.

Landmark PLCO Cancer Screening Trial Leaves Legacy Through Data

May 27, 2025 | By Alyssa Voss, M.P.H.

More than thirty years ago, NCI announced an ambitious cancer screening trial to find answers about the utility of cancer screening tests in preventing deaths from four types of cancer. This year, the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal, and Ovarian Cancer (PLCO) Screening Trial officially ended but its legacy lives on through its available resources to the research community.

The NCI Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program – Developing Multidisciplinary Scientists and Expanding the Cancer Prevention Workforce

December 5, 2024 | By Jessica Faupel-Badger, Ph.D., M.P.H. & Alyssa Voss, M.P.H.

The Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program (CPFP), NCI’s distinctive postdoctoral fellowship program that combines independent, mentored research with training in translational cancer prevention science, population health, leadership, and communication, is nearing its 40th anniversary. In light of this milestone, the CPFP, led by Acting Director, Jessica Faupel-Badger, Ph.D., M.P.H., took the opportunity to re-connect with program alumni across the globe and evaluate long-term outcomes of the program.

A Deep Dive into Awareness and Perceptions of Potential Benefits and Harms of Multi-Cancer Detection Tests

December 2, 2024 | By Goli Samimi, Ph.D., M.P.H. & Liz Freedman, M.S.W., M.P.H.

Research is underway to try to address the many unanswered questions about cancer screening with multi-cancer detection (MCD) tests, a new type of blood test designed to detect multiple cancers.

Targeting Prevention to Reduce the High Human Toll of Rare Cancers

October 1, 2024 | By DCP Staff

Each Rare Cancer Accounts for less than 40,000 new cases each year.

At the Rare Cancers Prevention and Interception workshop this year, cancer researchers from across the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom and from across disciplines sought to address many of the issues that can hamper research progress for these diseases.

Research Highlights: Looking Deep into Genetic Changes that Increase Colorectal Cancer Risk to Prevent or Detect Inherited Cancers

September 10, 2024 | By DCP Staff

Illustration of a DNA strand breaking apart in a section.

Lynch syndrome, also known as hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC), is the most common inherited genetic change that increases the risk of several kinds of cancer including colorectal cancer. About 3% of all colorectal cancers in the United States occur in people with these inherited genetic changes; more than 1 million people in the U.S. have this syndrome.