DF/HCC Kidney Cancer SPORE Biostatistics and Bioinformatics Core 1

SUMMARY
The Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center (DF/HCC) SPORE in Kidney Cancer Biostatistics and
Bioinformatics Core (Core 1) collaborates and provides consultation on all research activities within the
SPORE including SPORE Projects, the Developmental Research and Career Development Programs, and
other SPORE Cores - to ensure the highest standards of scientific rigor in areas of study design, data
management and integrity, and data analysis and interpretation. The specific aims are to: (1) Provide
biostatistical and bioinformatic expertise for the planning and design, conduct, analysis, and reporting of
laboratory, genomic, animal, translational, clinical (including associated correlative studies), and
epidemiological studies for SPORE Projects, Developmental Research and Career Development Program
projects, and other SPORE Cores. (2) Provide consultation on all issues of data management and integrity,
including data collection, storage, transfer and quality assurance, on statistical and bioinformatic software and
programs, and on coordination of laboratory results with parameters and outcomes from clinical studies or
clinical/translational research databases. (3) Provide short-term biostatistical and bioinformatic consulting to
SPORE researchers. Organizing biostatistical and bioinformatic expertise as a shared resource core is a cost-
effective approach to ensure that collaboration is readily available to SPORE investigators and an effective
strategy to guarantee a high degree of integration among projects with interrelated analytic goals and needs.
The development of new statistical and computational methodologies for cancer research has resulted in an
expanded role for the statistician, bioinformatician and computational biologist in the research process and a
higher standard for what constitutes acceptable scientific evidence in a study. Biostatisticians and
computational biologists are professionally committed to staying on top of these developments and apply their
expertise to check assumptions, assure appropriate use, and interpret results and limitations--a challenge
beyond what can reasonably be expected of translational investigators.

Grant Number: 3P50CA101942-20S1
NIH Institute/Center: NIH
Principal Investigator: PAUL CATALANO