London, UK, and Boston, US, February 10, 2014 – Canada’s Segal Cancer Centre at the Jewish General Hospital and Q-CROC (Quebec-Clinical Research Organization Consortium) have selected IDBS’ Translational Science Solution. As part of this, IDBS will provide pivotal support for its personalized medicine program. The centre is redefining cancer as a collection of rare diseases, each with its own molecular signature. This has created a strategic need to employ a structured data approach so as to alleviate any analysis bottlenecks that typify translational research.
“We need to understand cancer subtypes and their molecular signatures and this creates big, complex data sets. IDBS’ solution will enable us to capture, integrate and analyze not only our own data but also other data sets such as public sources. We need to perform extensive computer manipulation to gain even the most basic analysis. It is imperative we have a data management system in place that can handle not only this level of data interrogation but future more complicated demands,” said Dr Gerald Batist, Director of the Segal Cancer Centre at the Jewish General Hospital, and Scientific Director of Q-CROC. “IDBS’ solution meets that demanding need and we anticipate it being a key tool as we join forces across the pharma industry.”
Scientists conducting serial biopsy trials, initially with breast cancer, melanoma and colorectal cancer patients, will use the IDBS solution to capture molecular signatures for omics data profiled from patients’ metastatic cancer tumors. This will help scientists to understand cancer subtypes and their characteristics and to determine the molecular signatures of therapeutic resistance to specific treatments. When patients’ tumors present a specific ‘signature’, treatments can then be targeted to match specific proteins to improve patient outcomes and also help them avoid accruing needless toxicity.
IDBS’ solution will also be used to support a new and unique program across Quebec that prospectively collects all primary tumors. This will follow patients throughout their cancer trajectory including at the time of tumor relapses when the patients might participate in the Q-CROC serial biopsy trials. The aim is to build a vast bio bank and accompanying database and easily identify and access patient sub-groups and support patient stratification in drug development.
“Translational studies often have big data sets that are also highly complex. The Segal Cancer Centre is changing the way it addresses cancer research. To support that it needs a completely new and structured approach to data capture and manipulation in order to make sense of all that data,” said Neil Kipling, CEO and Founder of IDBS. “By implementing IDBS’ Translational Science Solution, it will be able to manipulate the continuous streams of information across its own data and public sets and ultimately data from across the pharma community. This will enable researchers to get that much closer, that much quicker to identifying the specific molecular signatures.”
“Cross organizational collaboration within translational science is crucial. Our patients want doctors and scientists talking and sharing with each other. Employing the IDBS solution helps build confidence and gets us closer to that goal. The more people get together, the more likely it is to see new things, or see old things with new minds. It’s time to kick down the walls to help cut away the research silos and collaborate with each other transnationally,” said Dr Batist.
An extensive due diligence process completed by the Segal Cancer Centre and its Q-CROC partners demonstrated IDBS’ strong track record, deep sector expertise and total commitment to the life sciences sector over its competitors. IDBS’ software is often used as a common tool on which organizations build their global links and IDBS is frequently seen as the pharma industry partner of choice.
For further press information please contact Metia for IDBS:
Email: caroline.beer@metia.com
Tel: +44 (0)20 3100 3796
About IDBS
IDBS is a leading global provider of software for the secure capture, storage, sharing and use of complex data within research, development and manufacturing organizations. Our technology enables researchers to easily access, visualize and analyze information as well as collaborate internally and externally, allowing easy communication whilst protecting intellectual property.
Our customers include the world’s leading pharmaceutical and biotechnological companies, as well as prominent organizations in agricultural technology, chemicals, consumer goods, cosmetics, energy, food and beverage and healthcare.
Founded in 1989 and privately held, IDBS is headquartered in the United Kingdom with offices across Europe, Asia and the Americas.
Further information can be found at www.idbs.com or follow us on Twitter @IDBSsoftware.
About the Jewish General Hospital
Since 1934, the Jewish General Hospital (JGH) has been a mainstay of superior medical care for generations of patients of all backgrounds. One of Quebec’s largest and busiest acute-care hospitals, the JGH is committed to improving the quality of healthcare for all Quebecers in partnership with the provincial healthcare network. Moreover, the JGH has redoubled its commitment to provide patients with the best possible care in a clean, safe and human-centered environment. The JGH is able to deliver these pioneering, innovative medical services by strengthening its role as a McGill University teaching hospital, by expanding and upgrading its facilities and by pursuing cutting-edge research at the Lady Davis Institute at the JGH. Website: www.jgh.ca
About the Segal Cancer Centre
The Segal Cancer Centre (SCC) is committed to excellence in patient care. The Centre is dedicated to understanding cancer and improving patient outcomes through fundamental, translational and clinical research activities. The goal of the SCC is to accelerate the transfer of discoveries and improve communication between basic and clinical science so that more therapeutic insights might be derived from new scientific ideas, and vice versa.
About Q-CROC
Q-CROC (Quebec-Research Consortium Clinical Oncology) is a network of research centers and healthcare facilities across hospitals and universities in Quebec. Q-CROC aims to increase and improve innovative cancer research to help patients access the most advanced treatments. Sharing knowledge across the Q-CROC network enhances clinical research expertise and attracts more advanced clinical cancer studies which, in turn, improve patient access to the most innovative cancer drugs available. By collaborating across industry, government, healthcare institutions and the research community, Q-CROC is helping to position Quebec at the forefront of national and international personalized cancer care. It also works closely with patients to help make personalized medicine a reality and patient-centered medicine a standard across Quebec.
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