Oct. 1, 2014:

A conversation with Timothy L. Ratliff, PhD, Robert Wallace Miller Director of the Purdue University Center for Cancer Research, which is a member of the Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium.

Q: What kind of impact do you see the Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium having on cancer clinical trials?

The collaborative interactions among Big Ten cancer centers will enable more rapid testing of new therapeutics. In truth, the whole is greater than the parts. By combining forces, multiple institutions will participate in clinical studies, patient accrual will occur more briskly and, therefore, outcomes will be determined more rapidly. Read More

Sept. 1, 2014:

What is the process for submitting a budget with the LOI to the funder?

The process begins with the Principal Investigator sending the proposed Letter of Intent (LOI) or protocol to Big Ten CRC Administrative Headquarters (Admin HQ). Each PI completes a brief questionnaire regarding the different elements that the budget should include. Once all necessary costs are added into the budget, Admin HQ will send the budget, along with the LOI or protocol to the funder for review. Admin HQ will negotiate the overall study budget directly with the funder, and the contracts department will then generate and negotiate a work order with each participating institution for payments that the sites will receive for participating in the trial. Read More

Sept. 1, 2014:

A conversation with Howard Bailey, MD, interim director of the UW Carbone Cancer Center, which is a member of the Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium. Dr. Bailey, a professor of medicine, is a medical oncologist who specializes in gynecologic oncology and cancer prevention. He has led the development of three different state- and nation-wide clinical research networks to expand the access of “cutting edge” treatment for patients.

Q: What kind of impact do you see the Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium having on cancer clinical trials?

Without a doubt, the Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium will offer accelerated advancement when moving science into groundbreaking clinical trials. The consortium forms a strong collaboration because of the cancer advances each Big Ten institution has already made and the research infrastructures in place at each location. And we know the consortium will leverage and grow the existing relationships among cancer centers in development of clinical trials. This is a win-win for all of these institutions and more importantly, for all cancer patients that will be affected by the novel treatments of tomorrow. Read More

Aug. 1, 2014:

A conversation with Raymond J. Hohl, MD, PhD, director of Penn State Hershey Cancer Institute, which is a member of the Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium. Dr. Hohl joined Penn State Hershey from the Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Iowa, where he held the Holden Family Chair/associate chair of the Department of Internal Medicine, as well as associate director for clinical and translational research. At Penn State, he will hold academic appointments as professor in the departments of Medicine and Pharmacology.

Q: What kind of impact do you see the Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium having on cancer clinical trials?

The Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium allows investigators from Penn State Hershey Cancer Institute and the other Big Ten institutions to more rapidly advance their concepts to active clinic trials. Because the trials will be developed and performed by a more tightly knit group of like-minded investigators, it is expected that the time from idea to completion of the trial will be substantially shortened as compared to the national clinical trials network’s current approach. For the principal investigators, this will mean more rapid advancement of their careers. For our patients with cancer, this will result in even more therapies and treatment options. Read More

Aug. 1, 2014:

From a contracts perspective, what does a Big Ten institution need to do to open as a site in a Big Ten CRC study?

Each Big Ten CRC institution signed a master site agreement, called an Institutional Participant Agreement (the “IPA”), when it joined the Big Ten CRC. If an institution wants to participate as a site in a particular study, the AHQ will provide a study specific work order under the IPA. The work order will include a site budget and any study specific terms required by the study funder or sponsor investigator’s institution (e.g., study specific intellectual property terms). Read More

July 1, 2014:

A conversation with Patrick J. Loehrer, Sr., MD, director of the Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Cancer Center, which is a member of the Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium:

Q: What kind of impact do you see the Big Ten CRC having on cancer clinical trials?

Individual cancer centers do terrific things, but collectively, we can do even more. We’re developing collaborative IRB agreements, regulatory mechanisms to facilitate rapid opening and completion of trials. Ultimately, if a Big Ten consortium trial is approved in Indiana, the same trial could be immediately opened up at Michigan, Iowa or Nebraska. If we are looking at a cancer with a rare molecular marker, we will have the ability to conduct a trial of 20 or 30 patients very rapidly because of a large pool of patients. Thus, the consortium should lead us to more rapid discoveries. Read More

July 1, 2014:

What type of trial is the Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium (Big Ten CRC) looking to perform?

The Big Ten CRC’s mission is to perform novel, hypothesis-driven, highly translational oncology trials. Two other important components in Big Ten CRC trials is mentorship between junior and senior investigators as well as cross-collaboration between Big Ten CRC institutions. See the complete list of Big Ten CRC Research Criteria. Read More

June 6, 2014:

Representatives of Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium (Big Ten CRC) member institutions gathered recently in Chicago during the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). The consortium held a series of meetings that produced new trial concepts and laid the groundwork for further developments in the Big Ten CRC.

On Friday, May 30, more than 50 Big Ten CRC representatives, including several cancer center directors and a number of junior and senior investigators, gathered for a working meeting. Three breakout groups discussed the following topics: Read More

June 1, 2014:

A conversation with Ken Cowan, MD, PhD, director of Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center, which is a member of the Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium:

Q: What kind of impact do you see the Big Ten CRC having on cancer clinical trials?

Researchers can work together to turn ideas into potential new treatments. The clinical trials developed will link to molecular diagnostics, enabling researchers to understand what drives the cancers to grow and what might be done to stop them. Read More

May 27, 2014:

The Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium (Big Ten CRC) announces the appointment of Susan Goodin, PharmD, as executive officer of the consortium.

Dr. Goodin is executive director of statewide affairs at Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey and professor of medicine at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. She possesses more than 20 years of clinical research leadership experience including serving as the deputy director of operations, associate director of clinical trials and therapeutics, and director of the Division of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the Cancer Institute of New Jersey. She played a key role in the establishment of the Cancer Institute’s clinical practice and designed its clinical research infrastructure, including the Center’s research office, research pharmacy, and protocol review and monitoring system. Dr. Goodin is a founding co-leader of the Cancer Institute of New Jersey’s statewide clinical trials network that includes 15 hospitals under the Center’s clinical research infrastructure. Read More