Sept. 13, 2004 – The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has launched a $144-million, five-year plan to apply nanoscale technology to researching and treating cancer.

To carry out the effort, the institute is forming the NCI Alliance for Nanotechnology in Cancer, which will bring together researchers, clinicians and organizations to develop and translate cancer-related nano research into clinical practice. The alliance will create nano-research centers within existing public facilities and a laboratory for pre-clinical testing that will help boost regulatory review and translation of nanomaterials and devices into the clinical realm, according to an NCI news release.

The alliance is designed as one of the first steps in crafting a Cancer Nanotechnology Plan, which will include milestones to measure success over two time periods. Within the first three years, the plan calls for accelerating projects promising for near-term clinical application. After three years, the plan will focus on solutions to more difficult technological and biological problems that could affect detection and treatment, the release said.