The Center is committed to both systematic evaluation of our treatment models and to collaboration with researchers investigating problems where a family—focused approach to substance abuse may help improve treatment outcome. Two examples of such projects in the exploratory stage are:

• a collaboration with the Department of Psychiatry at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Institute examining the usefulness of a multiple-family discussion group intervention with head and neck cancer patients and their families. The goal is to prevent re-exacerbation of cancer by interrupting the cycle of cancer patients’ continuing use of alcohol (a major carcinogen) and thus decreasing the chance of recurrence cancers after otherwise successful initial treatment; and
• a collaboration with the Institute of Psychiatry at the Maudsley Hospital in London to carry out an effectiveness trial of our systemic-motivational model of family-focused substance abuse treatment.

Contact:
Center for Substance Abuse and the Family
212 879-4900, ext 316