La. Cancer Research Center Not Achieved National Cancer Institute Designation After 15 Years

Auditors evaluating the Louisiana Cancer Research Center, which was created by the Legislature in 2002, found it has not yet achieved the National Cancer Institute designation that would allow it and its consortium members to compete for additional federal funding and provide many benefits to the state of Louisiana.

The Center’s primary function is to conduct research and education related to the diagnosis, detection, and treatment of cancer as it pursues the National Cancer Institute designation. The nonprofit organization is made up of four research and medical institutions: Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans, Tulane University Health Sciences Center, Xavier University of Louisiana, and Ochsner Health System.

Since 2003, the Center has received $144.2 million from state tobacco tax proceeds for cancer research and $92.4 million in state capital outlay funds to build and equip its facility. The Center has made scientific progress, such as increasing its funding base and its enrollment of patients into cancer trials, but changes in its administrative structure are needed to advance the Center toward achieving NCI designation.

For example, auditors found that the Center’s Board of Directors has not hired a director to lead the NCI designation effort, despite many discussions about the need. Instead, the Board has spent money on research at the individual institutions that make up the consortium.

In addition, the Board has not adopted a strategic plan outlining how the Center will achieve the NCI designation despite such a plan being required by law and the National Cancer Institute. The Center also has not developed a required written agreement that explains how each institution will contribute to achieving the NCI designation.

Auditors found that the Center’s Board has relied on declining and unstable state funding and has not actively pursued other revenue sources, such as fund raising or revenue from clinical activities. The Board also has had to reallocate funds from its cancer research program to help pay the facility’s operating expenses. When the Board of Directors authorized the construction, auditors said, it underestimated the future costs associated with operating the facility.