The I-SPY 2 trial employs a groundbreaking clinical trial model that uses genetic or biological markers (“biomarkers”) from individual patients’ tumors to screen promising new treatments, identifying which treatments are most effective in specific types of patients. In addition, an innovative adaptive trial design will enable researchers to use early data from one set of patients to guide decisions about which treatments might be more useful for patients later in the trial, and eliminate ineffective treatments more quickly. The large-scale trial involves a unique collaboration by scientists from the National Cancer Institute (NCI), FDA, and nearly 20 major cancer research centers across the country. Study results will be made broadly available to the entire cancer research and development community. 

The use of bacterial endotoxin in clinical research is essential to the study of the effects of inflammation on the body and as a potent stimulus to enhance immune responses in clinical trials of anti-cancer immunotherapy.

BRIDGE is a public-private consortium with the goal of developing gene-specific anticancer therapies to advance cancer treatment. The project applies new systems biology strategies to identify genes that are aberrant in cancer cells.

Understanding Targeted Therapies for Cancer is an animated, educational tutorial series developed by the National Cancer Institute for health professionals. The tutorials, available online or in DVD format, provide practitioners with an overview of targeted cancer therapies, the latest FDA-approved targeted therapy drugs, and active clinical trials involving these treatments.

The Avon-NCI Progress for Patients Awards Program, completed in 2009, made a significant impact on breast cancer research, accelerating the movement of pre-clinical discoveries to application in patients, and fostering collaborative efforts that optimized resources and efficiencies.