News
New AACI Member: Cancer Center at Illinois
AACI welcomes its newest member this spring, with the addition of the Cancer Center at Illinois (CCIL), University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Rohit Bhargava, PhD, is director of the center, which applies the university’s historic strengths in basic science and engineering to cancer. The mission of CCIL is to promote and translate engineering and scientific innovations to enable cancer-free lives.
Supported by decades of infrastructure investments and world-class educational programs, the CCIL is the hub of a highly integrated research ecosystem that aims to develop next-generation technologies to improve cancer care.
The CCIL is comprised of two complementary, multidisciplinary basic cancer research programs: Cancer Measurement Technology and Data Science, and Discovery Platforms Bridging the Engineering-Biology Continuum. These two programs employ 70 full members from across campus, including scientists with significant cancer research experience.
The cancer center is part of a university-wide focus on interdisciplinary health research, which also includes the launch of the engineering-based Carle Illinois College of Medicine. With a focus on maximizing shared resources, the CCIL has cultivated partnerships with the Carle Foundation Hospital and the Mayo Clinic to accelerate advances in cancer treatment and provide novel cancer-related educational experiences.