B19
VORTEX-BIOBANK: Translational tissue banking for the development of molecular profiles to individualise patient treatment
Rebecca Elliott1, Ana Hughes2, Joely Irlam-Jones1, Rob Grimer3, David Hughes4, Lucinda Billingham2, Martin Robinson4, Catharine West1
1University of Manchester, Manchester, UK, 2Cancer Research UK Trials Unit, Birmingham, UK, 3Royal Orthopaedic Hospital, Birmingham, UK, 4Weston Park Hospital, Sheffield, UK
Soft tissue sarcoma accounts for ~1% of adult cancers with ~1200 cases in the UK each year. The primary treatment is often surgery followed by adjuvant radiotherapy; however, many patients die of metastatic disease.
VORTEX-BIOBANK is a TRICC funded translational study co-ordinated from the University of Manchester that is linked to the national VORTEX sarcoma trial. Based on the observation that tumour oxygenation status can predict for the likelihood of developing distant metastases in sarcoma patients, VORTEX-BIOBANK aims to develop a hypoxia-associated pre-treatment tumour molecular profile. This could be used to identify patients with a poor prognosis who might benefit from adjuvant systemic therapy such as a hypoxia-modifying agent. A secondary aim is to investigate associations between common genetic variation (single nucleotide polymorphisms, SNPs) in candidate genes and radiation induced side-effects. These results could be used to develop genetic profiles for the greater individualisation of radiation dose prescription to optimise tumour control while reducing toxicity.
All patients enrolled in VORTEX are invited to take part in VORTEX-BIOBANK. We are collecting blood samples for SNP analyses, paraffin tissue blocks for tissue microarrays and fresh tumour and normal tissue for RNA microarrays. Kits are provided for the preservation of tissue and blood samples, and are efficiently transported to Manchester by Royal Mail. Small sample sizes (<5mm3) and quick transfer to RNAlater prevent tissue degradation and ensure quality samples. To date, we have extracted high quality RNA from 19/22 fresh tissue samples and hold in storage 19 blood samples and 6 blocks.
