The University of California’s five cancer research centers will be coordinating their efforts to treat and research the disease.

UC President Janet Napolitano and John Stobo, executive vice president of UC Health, announced Monday that cancer research institutions at UCLA, UC Davis, UC Irvine, UC San Diego and UC San Francisco have come together to form the UC Cancer Consortium.

The consortium will conduct clinical trials and research precision medicine and population health science, according to a UC press release. The consortium will also use the expertise of each of the UC’s cancer research centers to address issues such as the high cost of care and disparity in treatment outcomes.

Cancer is soon expected to overtake heart disease as the leading cause of death in California, and nearly one out of every two Californians will develop cancer, according to a report from the UC.