CPTAC Collaborates with Beat Childhood Cancer Research Consortium at Penn State to Advance Pediatric Oncology
BETHESDA, MD / HERSHEY, PA — The National Cancer Institute’s (NCI) Clinical Proteomic Tumor Analysis Consortium (CPTAC) is joining forces with the Beat Childhood Cancer Research Consortium at Penn State College of Medicine. This partnership aims to improve precision medicine for children with cancer by looking past the genetic code to the proteins actually driving tumor growth.
As part of this collaboration, CPTAC will perform comprehensive and targeted proteomic analysis of pediatric tumor samples that have already undergone genomic characterization. By layering proteomic data onto existing genomic insights, the effort seeks to provide a more complete molecular understanding of tumor biology and to identify actionable therapeutic vulnerabilities that may not be apparent through genomics alone.
Following data generation, CPTAC investigators will work closely with Penn State’s Precision Medicine Program and Molecular Tumor Board team to assess whether proteomic findings could refine, confirm, or modify therapy recommendations for individual patients. This collaborative review process is designed to evaluate the real-world clinical utility of proteomics in treatment decision-making, particularly in complex or ambiguous cases.
About CPTAC
CPTAC is a national initiative supported by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) that aims to accelerate the understanding of cancer biology through the large-scale analysis of tumor proteomes. By integrating proteomic data with genomic and clinical information, CPTAC seeks to improve cancer diagnosis, treatment stratification, and therapeutic development, while also generating high-quality, publicly available datasets for the research community.
About the Beat Childhood Cancer Research Consortium
The Beat Childhood Cancer (BCC) Research Consortium is an international academic group of 50+ universities and children’s hospitals that offer a worldwide network of childhood cancer clinical trials coordinated through Penn State College of Medicine. BCC has opened over 27 clinical trials based on the research from collaborating investigators who are linked with laboratory programs developing novel therapies for high-risk pediatric cancers. BCC’s mission is to improve outcomes for children with cancer.