We are a multidisciplinary group of statistical, computational and translational scientists (in collaboration with the laboratory scientists) in the ICR's Clinical Trials and Statistics Unit (ICR-CTSU) and the Division of Clinical Studies. We develop novel and efficient analytical methods for the application of high-dimensional genomic and proteomic data generated from biospecimens collected in clinical trials in order to:

1. identify genomic signatures for the selection of patients for specific chemotherapy and biologically targeted agents,

2. identify biological endpoints for emerging therapeutic targets, and

3. study the underlying biology of tumours from “exceptional” drug responders in various therapeutic agents across tumour types.

The ICR-CTSU provides a unique and rare opportunity for our translational genomics group to be integral to the trial management and classic statistical analysis environment. Using a systemic approach, we will develop statistical analytic tools for studying the relationship between survival data and high-dimensional genomic data. These include variable selection methods, ensemble learning and cross-data-type prediction to incorporate other data types like DNA copy number, methylation, and proteomics as available into our predictive algorithms, used for stratified medicine.