Shared Resource: Translational BioImaging

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PROJECT SUMMARY: TRANSLATIONAL BIOIMAGING CORE SHARED RESOURCE (TBICSR) In vivo imaging biomarkers have become indispensable in cancer research. The Translational BioImaging Core Shared Resource (TBICSR) provides a variety of imaging resources and support for Fred Hutch/University of Washington Cancer Consortium research through the interdisciplinary operations of shared resources across institutions. The goals of TBICSR are to make the widest range of high-end imaging resources available to Consortium members in a cost effective and efficient manner. TBICSR accopmplishes this by implementing a shared use model of imaging resources (and expertise). This is the most cost-effective way to make a wide range of imaging resources available to Consortium members regardless of usage volume at an individual site. Efficiency in enacting studies is enabled by allowing skilled users to access equipment via on-line scheduling and also by providing consultation services for prospective investigators seeking advice regarding imaging options. When consultation is requested, an imaging specialist is available to assist in Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) writing, arrangement of inter-institutional transportation and housing if needed, and system scheduling. Optimization of imaging resources is further supported through faculty imaging modality experts that engage with investigators that desire their guidance. Imaging equipment available through TBICSR spans the range of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET), computed tomography (CT), ultrasound (US), and optical imaging. Finally, TBICSR is supported by staff with greater than 60 years of experience in conducting research imaging studies and in animal handling and management. TBICSR obtained “Outstanding” ranking in the last CCSG cycle. The strengths of the resource were and continue to be the expertise of its imaging modality leaders and the large variety of specialized major instrumentation available to serve the imaging needs of Cancer Consortium members. In vivo imaging is an invaluable way to non-invasively and longitudinally study the disease process and therapeutic response in animals, which is so vital to Consortium research, prior to human studies.