OSU, Moffitt join forces in big data cancer collaboration

TAMPA, Fla. & COLUMBUS, Ohio—Big data efforts are getting a big boost thanks to a new collaboration between Moffitt Cancer Center and The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC-James). The partnership, known as the Oncology Research Information Exchange Network (ORIEN), will hit the ground running with more than 100,000 patients who have consented to donate their tissue and clinical data for research to improve molecular-level knowledge of cancer.

ORIEN’s goal is the development of more precise methods of preventing, detecting, diagnosing and treating cancer. To that end, the initiative will use the Total Cancer Care protocol to create a collaborative, “rapid learning” environment to share anonymous data, which will enable both the more rapid development of targeted treatments and faster matching of eligible patients to appropriate clinical trials.

“With ORIEN, we’re amassing a true national cancer database for the first time,” Dr. Michael Caligiuri, director of OSUCCC and CEO of the James Cancer Hospital, commented in a statement. “The collaboration across academic centers and with health care industry will not only help speed discovery, but will also provide patients with more personalized treatment options and ultimately, lead to better outcomes.”

Both organizations bring a variety of experience and infrastructure to this collaboration. Moffitt brings with it a biorepository and data warehouse of genotypic and phenotypic data, while the OSUCCC-James has extensive experience in translating molecular- and genetic-based discoveries into new tools and approaches. In addition, Moffitt’s subsidiary M2Gen will be used as ORIEN’s operational and commercial provider for support in data management and informatics.

“M2Gen will facilitate what we view as the ideal way to conduct cancer research and help patients – an approach that promotes collaborative learning at all levels,” said Dr. William S. Dalton, president and CEO of M2Gen. “The goal of our joint efforts with Moffitt and OSUCCC-James is to connect patients to the best treatment options, including clinical trials, by accelerating the discovery and delivery of personalized medicine.”

“Cancer is a highly complex disease, and potential breakthroughs have been stalled because we’ve lacked an efficient way to share incremental insights,” Dr. Alan F. List, president and CEO of Moffitt, said in a press release. “Even more frustrating, until today we’ve had no system to quickly match cancer patients from anywhere in the country with ongoing clinical research with the most potential to help them. By partnering with The Ohio State University through ORIEN, we’ve built a cancer research expressway.”

This initiative could also provide pharmaceutical companies to update their approaches toward clinical trial recruitment and design, as through M2Gen, researchers can match their targeted drugs to patients in participating ORIEN cancer centers based on their molecular profile. Scientists will be able to better identify potential candidates for their trials, which in turn could lead to better outcomes as well as more rapid and efficient clinical trials. ORIEN will be seeking out partnerships with other leading North American cancer centers.

SOURCE: Moffitt Cancer Center press release