Initiative to exchange cancer research information is launched

doi:10.1136/bmj.328.7442.728

BMJ 2004;328:728 (27 March), doi:10.1136/bmj.328.7442.728

News roundup

Initiative to exchange cancer research information is launched

London Stephen Pincock

Britain�s National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) has launched an initiative to improve the exchange of information in cancer research by encouraging research groups to make their data accessible to others.

The institute announced its plans in a special statement in Nature (2004;428:xii). The plans are backed by international cancer research organisations, including the US National Cancer Institute.

"Our vision is to create a culture of data exchange to bring scientists together in a virtual community, where data can be shared in a format that everyone will understand," said Professor Alex Markham, chief executive of Cancer Research UK and current chairman of the institute.

At the moment as much as 80% of the available information from cancer studies does not find its way into the public domain, he said.

The institute, an umbrella group that includes the UK government, Cancer Research UK, the Medical Research Council, and the . . . [Full text of this article]

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