Creating a new paradigm in nutrition research within the National Cancer Institute

Almost two decades after Doll and Peto (1981) provided evidence that one th ird of cancer deaths are related to diet, it remains unclear which dietary components may be key in cancer prevention. Although the complexity of the diet can become overwhelming, the National Cancer Institute (NCl) of the Na tional Institutes of Health (NIH) has remained steadfast in its commitment to defining the roles that diet and nutrition have in the development of ca ncer and has provided increased research and training support to assist in unraveling this interrelationship. Evidence for this sustained commitment i s highlighted by a fourfold increase in NCI expenditures for nutrition rese arch and training from 1983 to 1998; this substantial increase reflects a t rend that is occurring in some universities and the private sector. More th an one third of the nutrition-related NCI research is funded by the Divisio n of Cancer Prevention. Supported investigations cover the gamut from basic mechanisms of action of dietary constituents, methodology development, hum an metabolic studies, clinical trials of dietary modification and the chemo preventive potential of individual nutrients to population-based studies.