21st century biomedical technologies are changing more than scientific knowledge and methods—they are changing the scientific community itself and the ways in which individual scientists and scientific institutions interact cooperatively towards a common goal.
As caBIG® technology accelerates that dramatic shift in biomedical research, its impact extends far beyond the borders of the United States and even beyond cancer-specific research. caBIG® is actively collaborating to supply research-enabling technology to programs in other countries, to adapt tools and technology developed elsewhere to U.S. cancer research and clinical care, to leverage caBIG® infrastructure for research in other diseases, and to use caBIG® as an electronic "connector" to link disparate sectors of the healthcare system.
Learn more in this section about some of the key collaborations NCI and caBIG® are undertaking to connect the biomedical and research communities.
Army of Women: In July 2009, caBIG® and the Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation announced their collaboration to create a 21st century research model—the Health of Women (HOW) Study—to build the first ever online cohort of one million women.
Family Health History Tool: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Family Health History Tool was launched, hosted and supported by the caBIG® program and represents a foundational step toward personalized medicine.
National Cancer Research Institute: The NCI and the U.K. National Cancer Research Initiative (NCRI) have a long-standing collaboration to leverage the best applications and technologies developed by each organization for the benefit of researchers in both countries. Among the ongoing efforts are the adaptation of NCRI tools to be caGrid-enabled and the integration of NCRI's Oncology Information eXchange (ONIX) portal with caBIG® tools.
Nationwide Health Information Network: caBIG® is actively engaged with members of the Nationwide Health Information Network to build an IT infrastructure that will enable secure sharing of health information between all the constituents of the healthcare community in the US.
Oncology Electronic Health Record: caBIG® is collaborating with the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) to develop an Electronic Health Record (EHR) that satisfies the unique needs of oncology research and care. Once developed, it will be deployed to the National Community Cancer Center Program (NCCCP) members, providing advanced technology for improved outcomes to underserved populations.
