Tissue and Research Pathology Services

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Abstract: Tissue and Research Pathology Services (TARPS) The Tissue and Research Pathology Services (TARPS) is an existing CCSG-funded shared resource that serves as the central support for UPCI research programs that utilize tissue materials from UPMC patients. The main objectives of TARPS are to provide a mechanism to simplify, streamline, and standardize the process of research tissue accrual and disbursement, and to provide efficient research pathology support services. The tissue accrual and disbursement function of TARPS originated in 1991 as a small service facility, with a focus on genitourinary cancers. The resource has substantially expanded in the last 23 years and now procures and disburses tissue materials from patients with a diverse array of cancers, providing support to major research projects such as the Specialized Programs Of Research Excellence (SPORE) in Head and Neck, Lung, Ovary and Skin Cancers; the Early Disease Research Network (EDRN)-related research efforts; the Hematology-Oncology Service, and several other cancer research programs. The specific aims of TARPS are to: 1) Provide tissue and biological specimen procurement services. This includes procurement and preservation of tissue and biological specimens; storage and filing of specimens and downstream retrieval of specimens for researchers; providing appropriately sub-sampled tissue specimens with appropriate Quality assurance and Quality control of specimens; and associated data, as per the needs of the project. 2) Provide research histology services. This includes routine processing of tissue samples; design and manufacture paraffin tissue microarrays (TMAs); evaluation of novel antibodies and establishing protocols; immunohistochemical staining of conventional and TMA tissue sections, using an automated platform; and Quantitative Image Analysis and Morphometry services, when needed. 3) Annotate samples with clinical data. Data annotation is per needs of the project. TARPS utilizes resources including EMR, Pathology LIS and the UPMC Cancer Registry database for these data annotation services. 4) Provide whole slide imaging and image analysis services. TARPS has played a major role in the TCGA program having provided more than 1000 cases. Services provided by TARPS include: (1) tissue and biological specimen procurement, (2) research histology, (3) annotation of samples with clinical data, and (4) Tissue Micro-Array (TMA) facilities (5) Quantitative Image analysis and whole slide Imaging.. Future efforts include the development of a large array of TMA blocks from the TCGA cases to facilitate leveraging the molecular data generated. We are also engaged in the development of new protocols to enable profiling of numerous markers on a single slide. During the current project period investigators from all 10 Research Programs used TARPS.