The mission of the DCI Small Cell Cancer Center is to deliver comprehensive, patient-centered care with rapid access to novel therapies, clinical trials, and multidisciplinary expertise, and to advance the field through research. The center has five core pillars:

1. Patient-facing excellence: rapid deployment of breakthrough therapies, streamlined care pathways, and faster clinical trial enrollment
2. Research leadership: innovation through clinical trials and translational science
3. Multidisciplinary integration: coordinated care across all relevant specialties
4. Community impact: serving patients locally and regionally while advancing the field
5. Network expansion: extending COE-level care across the Duke Cancer Network