Effective procurement and utilization of well-characterized tissue is essential in any meaningful translational research. The Informatics, Tissue Resource, and Pathology Core will work with each of the SPORE projects and with the Administrative and Biostatistics Cores to ensure maximum efficiency in the use of tissue for translational research directed at improving the prevention, detection, and therapy of melanoma. Core B will provide investigators at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and other collaborating institutions with well-characterized, high-quality tissue, peripheral blood lymphocytes, plasma, and serum samples from patients with melanoma treated at M. D. Anderson Cancer Center whose clinical, pathologic, follow-up, and recurrence data are maintained in a comprehensive relational database. This SPORE facility will subsume the existing M. D. Anderson Cancer Center Melanoma Tissue Bank. Standardized procedures for procurement, processing, storage, quality control, histopathologic evaluation and distribution of samples will ensure optimal utilization and distribution of limited tissue samples according to the guidelines established by the Tissue Acquisition and Distribution Committee. A computerized Core database will track all samples from patient consent, to tissue acquisition and distribution of tissue and blood components to SPORE Projects. This system will contain comprehensive clinical information on all patients as well as relevant histopathologic characteristics for all samples and provide information on sample availability for future distribution through an NCI-sponsored tissue network. As over 900 new patients with melanoma are seen and treated at M. D. Anderson Cancer Center per year, this Core will be one of the largest available resources for translational research. The close relationship with the Biostatistics Core will allow an efficient analysis of the data produced by the different SPORE projects. Leadership for the Core is shared by a clinical investigator with expertise in melanoma patient care, database utilization and analysis of melanoma prognostic factors, and by a dermatopathologist with expertise in melanoma, including histopathologic evaluation, molecular analysis and quality-control procedures; this shared leadership will ensure maximal utilization of samples without compromising patient care. This centralized, comprehensive Core will contribute significantly to the success of the multidisciplinary and translational research projects outlined in this proposal.
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