The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia has a shiny, new $504 million dollar, 12-story research center where scientists can discover treatments to save the lives of countless children with cancer, brain tumors, mitochondria and a host of other diseases. But this type of life-saving work would be impossible without information technology, says Thomas Curran.
Curran, who studies childhood brain tumors, serves as deputy scientific officer of The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Research Institute, where scientists undertake research biochemistry, genetics,
“Biomedicine has become a much more information-intensive field,” Curran says.
“Pretty much everything we do is dependent on information technology.”
Always top for mind for the researchers, says Curran, is bridging the gap between basic research and clinical applications,” he adds.
It’s what Philip R. Johnson, MD, chief scientific officer at CHOP, calls “translational research” – transforming scientific discoveries into medical innovations.
"Those innovations are aimed at improving the lives of children and families,” Johnson says. “Having state-of-the-art space, equipment and technology will help us attract top-level researchers to join the preeminent scientists already here.
" Vast amounts of data are used for the research and information technology systems are key to collecting, organizing and interpreting the data, Curran says. CHOP’s electronic health record system (from Verona, Wis.-based EPIC Systems) is also critical. Researchers extract data from the EHRs to help them in their research.
The data – stripped of patient identification – help researchers identify markers for various diseases, create models, consider new treatments and develop clinical trials. The researchers also employ high-level image processing technology to study cancer cells, reviewing hundreds of MRIs (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) against a model. Informatics has accelerated the rate at which researchers can do their work and also the depth, Curran says, which leads to more targeted and more effective treatments. “This points to the underlying principal of personalize medicine,” he says.
An initial $25 million contribution by long-time board members Ruth M. and Tristram C. Colket, Jr. helped to launch construction of the new 12-story research center called the Colket Translational Research Building. The goal is for scientists across a variety of disciplines, all dedicated to developing treatments for a specific pediatric disease, to work side-by-side. Physical proximity will foster close collaboration, thus providing more opportunities for new ideas and expedited results.
"This facility provides a new, custom-designed setting to advance our already robust research to the next level," said Stephen B. Burke, chairman of the Board of Trustees of Children's Hospital. "We are building more than glass and steel; we are building 21st century health care for children worldwide."
