In 1996, the University of Hawaii Cancer Center (UH) received National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designation, an honor it has held continuously since that time. NCI-Designated Cancer Centers must go through rigorous and competitive renewal of their status every three to five years.

The Center’s mission is to reduce the burden of cancer through research, education, and outreach, with an emphasis on the unique ethnic, cultural, and environmental characteristics of Hawaii and the Pacific.

The UH Cancer Center is a research organization within the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa with facilities located in Kakaʻako. A world-class cancer center building was completed in early 2013. The UH Cancer Center directly employed 300 faculty and staff, with another 200 affiliate members through the Hawaiʻi Cancer Consortium.