If the job of the University of Hawaii Cancer Center is research, said center official Dr. Brian Issell, the primary mission of its private-sector counterparts is health care. Less formally and more specifically: UH Cancer Center is the ivory tower, the Queen’s Cancer Center is real world.

The two halves work pretty well together these days, Debbie Ishihara-Wong agreed, adding that since the formation of the Hawaii Cancer Consortium, the turf battles of the past have receded.

Ishihara-Wong, director of oncology services at the Queen’s center, acknowledges that there is still overlap. One of the most recent developments at the center happened in 2010 when, through a $40 million grant under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Queen’s and 13 other sites joined the National Cancer Institute’s Community Cancer Centers Program. That network now includes 30 hospital-based sites around the country.

The program aims to expand research opportunities, in part by making it easier for cancer patients to take part in clinical trials. The initial contract with NCI has been extended through June, Ishihara-Wong said, adding that the center is reapplying to continue as part of the network.

Among the program components, the center now has on staff a coordinator who can help to foster a multidisciplinary approach to care, she added, simplifying matters for patients who sometimes must work with multiple specialists to arrange their chemotherapy, radiation and surgical treatments.

The federal funds have enhanced the center’s other strategies, such as its "navigators" who help the patients understand the overwhelming world of cancer care. Additionally, there’s a patient resource advocate who helps them figure out what financial support or assistance they’ll need to get through the whole treatment course.

The overall trend is toward better collaboration, Ishihara-Wong said — not only among the Hawaii players, but nationally.

"What I love about this program is I’ve had access to 29 other institutions, where we readily share our best practice," she said. "Instantly we share among ourselves, and it really helps."