This study is now open and to date 38 participants from The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia have been enrolled. Consent forms have been signed. Complete family histories have been obtained from these patients and I anticipate collection of blood samples for genotype testing to commence within the next month. Other cases of second malignancies and appropriate controls have been contacted for participation in the study and response is pending. In addition, I am continuing to receive updated information from the tumor registry regarding new cases who would meet eligibility requirements. Four such cases have been found to date and their participation in the study is being sought. Controls are being randomly chosen for these cases. With respect to the Childhood Cancer Cohort Study, a full proposal has been submitted and we expect participation of these study participants pending IRB and administrative approval at the local institutions. A mechanism has been established whereby the study participants are seen in the GCRC outpatient facility, or by their local physicians. The GCRC nurses will obtain blood samples locally or by mail and forward them to the GCRC laboratory where Dr. Friedman will work with the laboratory staff in DNA extraction and short cell culture preparation for RNA. The DNA/RNA will then be stored in the laboratory of Dr. Timothy Rebbeck and genotype testing will be performed in his and Dr. Weber's laboratories. Dr. Friedman has met with Dr. Rebbeck and his staff and has begun training in molecular biology techniques. She will develop additional assays for potential cancer susceptibility genes in the labs of Drs. Rebbeck and Weber. Bi-monthly meetings have been held with Dr. Meadows, the mentor for this project with respect to progress and potential areas of difficulty.
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