The prostate pathology core provides essential services to all projects in the SPORE with major commitmentto tissue acquisition and processing, tissue histology and analysis including specialized techniques, andpathology consultation. The core is fully committed to collaboration with other SPORE and NCI programs,including the National Biospecimen Network (NBN), the Inter-SPORE Prostate Biomarker Study (IPBS), theNCI informatics grid (e.g. CA-BIG etc.), the Inter-SPORE Clinical Trial Concept Committee, and the EarlyDetection Research Network (EDRN). The core infrastructure includes a Pathology Coordinating Centerwhich interacts with the SPORE Executive Committee to prioritize resources among competing projects. Fortissue collection the core will expand existing resources including a functioning tissue bank funded by theJonsson Cancer Center and the Departments of Pathology and Urology to provide services to the projectsincluding harvesting, collection, and processing of fresh biopsy, prostatectomy, serum and urine specimens.Tissue will be collected from prostate core biopsies, prostatectomy specimens, trans-urethral resections, andmetastatic tumor from surgical and autopsy specimens. All specimens will be evaluated pathologically bythe Pi's (Dr. Said or Dr. Thomas) to ensure accurate and consistent classification and grading of tumors.The core will also provide a full range of services including processing, fixation, and embedding of humanand murine tissues, routine histology, and specialized immunohistochemistry and in-situ hybridizationstudies. Particularly use will be made of high throughput techniques incorporating tissue arrays from over500 cases of prostate carcinoma already prepared, as well as second generation arrays with samplesrelated to outcome such as PSA recurrence and metastasis. A computerized database will be maintained ofwell-characterized matched samples of normal and neoplastic tissues. This database is electronically linkedto the clinical database maintained by the SPORE Biostatistics core and the Department of Urology. Thecore will validate IRB approvals before performing studies, and will maintain patient confidentiality at alltimes. Core facilities include a histology laboratory, a fully automated immunohistochemistry laboratory,computerized instrumentation for quantitative immunohistochemistry, and a tissue array facility. One of thekey contributions of this core is expert pathology consultative services. The Pi's have demonstratedexpertise with prostate pathology, both clinical and experimental, involving human and murine tissue. Theinvestigators will continue to work closely with SPORE investigators in experimental design, use of humanand murine tissues, and analysis and interpretation of results. Drs. Said and Thomas have co-authored over30 prostate cancer publications during the five years of SPORE funding, reflecting their engagement in theprogram and contribution of this core to prostate cancer research at UCLA.
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