An unparalleled opportunity

If widely and effectively implemented, evidence-based interventions could reduce cervical cancer deaths in the next ten years by 90%, colorectal cancer deaths by 70%, and lung cancer deaths by 95%. The next decade offers an unparalleled opportunity for implementation science to reduce the cancer burden for the fifteen million people in the United States who will be diagnosed with cancer during that time. 

Yet, evidence-based intervention implementation in the real world does not often have the impact seen in research settings. When the approach used is “implementation as usual,” implementation strategies are not matched to important contextual factors. Instead, implementation strategies are selected based on personal or organizational preference, “it seemed like a good idea at the time,” and other subjective criteria.

Implementation science can support optimized evidence-based intervention implementation in cancer control by generating robust, practical methods for assessing context, prioritizing implementation barriers, and matching strategies to prioritized barriers.

OPTICC Center Aims

Develop a research program that supports development, testing, and refinement of innovative, efficient, and economical methods for optimizing evidence-based intervention implementation in cancer control.

Support a diverse implementation laboratory of clinical and community partners to conduct rapid implementation studies anywhere along the cancer care continuum for a wide range of cancer types.

Build implementation science capacity in cancer control by training new investigators, engaging established investigators in cancer-focused implementation science, and contributing to the Implementation Science Centers for Cancer Control Consortium.

Critical Barriers to Implementation

underdeveloped methods for barrier identification
incomplete understanding of strategy mechanisms
Underutilization of methods for optimizing strategies
poor measurement of implementation constructs

As a member of the National Cancer Institute’s  Implementation Science Centers for Cancer Control Consortium, the OPTICC Center’s mission is to address the grand challenge of improving cancer outcomes by supporting optimized evidence-based intervention implementation in community and clinical settings for a wide range of cancers across the cancer care continuum.

The overarching goal of the OPTICC Center is to use implementation science to develop, test, and refine innovative methods for optimizing evidence-based intervention implementation. As a Center, OPTICC’s grand challenge will be met with greater impact and efficiency by supporting multiple, synergistic studies that address these four critical barriers using shared resources rather than by conducting individual studies in isolation.

The OPTICC Center prioritizes research on six key issues

Barriers to implementation success
Partner-led Equity

Underdeveloped methods for implementation strategy barrier identification

Poor measurement of implementation constructs

Limited knowledge of implementation strategy mechanisms 

Underutilization of methods for optimizing strategies

Engaging practice partners to improve implementation efforts based on their priorities

Increasing equity and reducing disparities in cancer prevention 

Learn about OPTICC Center Methods for Optimization