Cancer genomics experts plan major fall meetings in Toronto and Washington

Cancer genomics experts meet at an International Cancer Genome Consortium planning session in 2007 in Toronto.
(CPimages for OICR)

Less than six months since the launch of the International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC), the ICGC Secretariat is planning two meetings this fall to work out details of the large-scale genome-sequencing effort and further define Canada’s contribution to this initiative.

Last October, the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (OICR) hosted scientists from 22 countries for a discussion of how to apply newfound knowledge about the human genome to the fight against cancer. After further consultations, they announced in April of this year that they were planning to embark on one of the largest human genome research endeavours to date.

The ICGC serves as a forum for international cancer communities to discuss common problems and share “lessons learned” through an international network that is dedicated to thoroughly characterizing the myriad genomic changes across many types of cancer. When patient protection policies are fully harmonized, the ICGC plans to provide an open-access, federated database that will enable access to data from what promises to be a large number of international programs. Over the next several years, each member-institute of the Consortium will sequence 500 samples of the one of the 50 most common types of cancer in the world.

OICR’s Cancer Genomics Platform, led by Dr. John McPherson, has signed on to study pancreatic tumours. OICR has also been selected to house the Data Coordination Centre for the entire Consortium, reflecting the Institute’s expertise in this area. Last year, renowned bioinformatician Dr. Lincoln Stein was recruited to lead OICR’s Informatics and Biocomputing Platform and has since recruited several leading experts, including Dr. Arek Kasprzyk, in the type of large-scale study being planned by the ICGC.

This October, 40 Canadian scientists are meeting in Toronto to discuss additional contributions that Canada can make to the Consortium. Dr. Lynda Chin, an American scientist, has been invited to talk about her experience with The Cancer Genome Atlas.

At the October workshop, leaders of biorepositories in Canada will also be invited to provide their input on which additional tumour types Canadian scientists could focus on. In addition to the immediate goal of defining contributions to the ICGC beyond pancreatic cancer, participants are also planning to discuss potential niches for Canada in future initiatives that go beyond the ICGC, such as understanding the biology of novel cancer targets and translating them into new diagnostics and targeted therapies to improve patient outcomes. The possibility of creating a Canadian Cancer Genome Consortium to facilitate Canada’s involvement in the ICGC over the longer term is also on the agenda.

In November, scientists from the jurisdictions that have made firm commitments to the ICGC will meet in Washington, D.C., to work out details about the Consortium and plan for the future. The purpose of the workshop is to discuss and coordinate the range of issues related to the development and implementation of initial plans for ICGC-associated projects.

 “In April the ICGC released a document that outlines the goals and principles of the Consortium. At the upcoming meeting the delegates will be turning that document into a concrete plan and refining some of the specific policies,” explains Jennifer Jennings, Manager of the ICGC Secretariat. “For example, one of the key issues with any genomic study is confidentiality of tissue donors, so at this meeting we will be discussing the ICGC policies for protecting the confidentiality of tissue donors via data access control mechanisms to ensure that the privacy of individuals will be protected.”

At the November workshop, which is restricted to members of the ICGC, each of the committed member-institutes will also confirm the tumour types they intend to study and will be discussing ways of working together internationally. Examples of anticipated session topics include sample acquisition and stewardship; patient informed consent and bioethics; anticipated data types and quality control of data; data analysis; data-sharing models for the federated database; funding models; and genome characterization technologies.

The Consortium is open to research institutes that have the ability to conduct high-quality genomic studies and share a commitment to principles of open access to data. A list of the current participants and the tumour types they are studying is expected to be published in the winter issue of Portal.

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