Tissue banks enabling more research on ovarian cancer
November 22, 2017
Prior to surgery for ovarian cancer, women who live in specific areas are asked if they would allow collection of biological samples in support of research. If they agree, small amounts of their blood, saliva, cells from healthy ovaries, as well as tissues from tumors will be collected and made available to scientists and physicians studying ovarian cancer.
Initiated in 2000, the Ovarian Cancer Canada Tissue Banking Network encompasses sites in Vancouver, Ottawa, Montreal, and Edmonton (as of Fall 2017). Its samples are used in studies throughout Canada and around the world.
“In addition to Ovarian Cancer Canada’s role in funding the Tissue Banking Network, its Research Committee is responsible for ensuring communication and cohesion between banks,” says Dr. Barbara Vanderhyden, Corinne Boyer Chair in Ovarian Cancer Research at the University of Ottawa, and Senior Scientist at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. “This coordinated approach helps encourage use of tissues in research while avoiding duplication of studies.”
Each year, between 800 and 1,000 women with ovarian cancer allow collection of their samples. Their generosity has created a vital foundation for discoveries that improve care for those living with this disease, and others who have yet to be diagnosed.
With the Vancouver bank recently expanding its collection to include other gynecological cancers, a total 1,409 women with gynecological cancers provided permission for their samples to be collected this year, resulting in more than 7,000 new samples.
Each is organized and indexed with accompanying data to establish an extensive resource that sets the Tissue Banking Network apart from others, paving the way for in-depth studies and standing as a beacon of excellence that promotes research where it’s urgently needed.
Among the larger scale projects it supports, COEUR is a pan-Canadian project funded by the Terry Fox Research Institute. It examines biomarkers in efforts to improve ovarian cancer diagnosis and inform treatment decisions on the path to personalized care. This exciting partnership helped launch a national project on immunotherapy; an emerging treatment that trains the body’s immune cells to target and kill ovarian cancer.
Beyond this, samples from the Tissue Banking Network have been used in more than 450 studies around the world.
Towards improved detection and diagnosis, projects are underway to:
- Image the fallopian tubes, where most high-grade serous ovarian cancers originate, to find lesions and possibly improve detection of this most common subtype of ovarian cancer
- Develop technology that analyzes tumour tissues with increased sensitivity, in turn improving accuracy of diagnosis
To treat ovarian cancer more effectively, researchers are working to:
- Predict which patients would respond to PARP inhibitors; drugs that target BRCA gene mutations, and possibly other deficiencies in DNA repair, to treat ovarian cancer
- Test drugs on tumour samples to determine the type of treatment that will effectively improve a patient’s survival and quality of life
- Differentiate between different types of TP53 gene mutations to guide selection of treatments and identify candidates for related clinical trials
- Confirm that cancers occurring simultaneously in the uterus and the ovary grow through the fallopian tubes, rather than through the bloodstream, to determine whether these cases can be successfully treated through surgery
- Examine genetic changes that occur when cancer cells divide to gain insights into subtypes of ovarian cancer that will help identify which patients would respond to the current standard of care and who should be referred for alternative treatments
The Ovarian Cancer Canada Tissue Banking Network is pivotal to each of these studies and many others. To ensure scientists and physicians across the country and internationally can continually draw from this vital resource, Ovarian Cancer Canada recently expanded the Tissue Banking Network to include a site in Edmonton at the University of Alberta.
“Research is the only way to stop ovarian cancer and the Tissue Banking Network helps build the scientific capacity needed to achieve that ultimate goal, these projects are proof of that,” says Elisabeth Baugh, CEO, Ovarian Cancer Canada. “Even as we press government to invest more in ovarian cancer research, the positive momentum must continue and you can help.”
The Tissue Banking Network is an important investment in ongoing research sustained entirely by your donations. To enable further scientific progress against ovarian cancer, please give generously at ovariancanada.org/donate.
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