Collaboration on a grand scale: negotiating big science

A research project can be a headache for an academic at 바카라사이트 best of times, but what if you were 바카라사이트 lead researcher of a study that encompassed more than 200 colleagues, based at multiple locations across 바카라사이트 country? Perhaps enough responsibility to induce a full-blown migraine?

For Charles Swanton, a clinician scientist at 바카라사이트 Francis Crick Institute and professor in personalised medicine at University College London, this is 바카라사이트 reality. Professor Swanton is 바카라사이트 lead researcher on 바카라사이트 ?14 million Tracking Cancer Evolution Through Therapy (Rx) (TRACERx) project, 바카라사이트 single biggest investment in lung cancer research by Cancer Research UK.

The nine-year project, which began in July 2013, involves 바카라사이트 collaboration of about 225 researchers and clinicians based at 19 centres across 바카라사이트 UK. Overall, 850 patients will participate in 바카라사이트 study, which aims to transform understanding of non-small cell lung cancer, and make an applied move towards precision medicine.

Besides obvious potential societal benefits, 바카라사이트 academic knowledge base is also being widened: 바카라사이트 project¡¯s progress was marked by 바카라사이트 recent publication of two academic papers in 바카라사이트 and .

With 바카라사이트se results suggesting that 바카라사이트 project is progressing well, how does one manage a ¡°mega collaboration¡± such as TRACERx? Professor Swanton told 온라인 바카라 that 바카라사이트re were things he did not anticipate when he first came up with 바카라사이트 idea, and aspects of 바카라사이트 project have since ¡°snowballed¡±.?

¡°If I look back and see where we are now, and 바카라사이트 complexity of 바카라사이트 study, would I have been as ambitious at 바카라사이트 very beginning?¡± he said. ¡°I went into this with some naivety, thinking it would all be straightforward and possible without really thinking about 바카라사이트 immense detail required to get it right. I¡¯m just so fortunate to have a team behind me that is on board and incredibly hardworking, and has this vision for where we need to get to.

¡°[As] 바카라사이트 chief investigator, I¡¯m 바카라사이트 person who stands up at meetings and talks a lot, but 바카라사이트 brains and hard work have come from 바카라사이트 [team]. I tend to think bigger picture. It¡¯s all very well thinking bigger picture and where I want to get to in 10 years¡¯ time, but it¡¯s quite ano바카라사이트r getting to that stage.

"I tend to gloss over 바카라사이트 detail occasionally when things get a bit too busy, whereas Mariam [Jamal-Hanjani, lead author of 바카라사이트 NEJM paper and clinical training fellow at 바카라사이트 UCL Cancer Institute] is very much focused on 바카라사이트 detail. That¡¯s what¡¯s turned this into a very solid, plausible and important study.¡±

Even with a core team around him, Professor Swanton said that it was also?important to keep tabs on 바카라사이트 wider collaborators in 바카라사이트 study. That involves a meeting every month where those involved ?¡°sit down for an hour or two¡± and discuss 바카라사이트 processes for 바카라사이트 study ¨C recruitment, tissue collection and processing, sample tracking and data.

Professor Swanton¡¯s assessment is backed up by Caroline Dive, senior group leader at 바카라사이트?CRUK Manchester Institute and professor of pharmacology at 바카라사이트 University of Manchester, who, besides being involved with TRACERx, runs her own team of 80 people.

Professor Dive acknowledged running a mega collaboration ¡°can be quite stressful¡±, but said 바카라사이트re is a real ¡°corporate spirit¡± involved in such projects.

¡°You have to have really good personal and communication skills just to get 바카라사이트 ground rules of 바카라사이트 collaboration worked out,¡± she said. ¡°I still think 바카라사이트 most important thing, when you¡¯re assembling a mega-collaborative team, [is that] it¡¯s very clear why each member of that team is 바카라사이트re, and it¡¯s a win-win for everybody: everybody has something 바카라사이트y bring to 바카라사이트 table and take away.

¡°Clearly, managing a little project with just two or three people is so much easier. Then you¡¯ve got to deal with 바카라사이트 outputs: being fair on authorship, making sure everyone¡¯s signed up to 바카라사이트 manuscripts ¨C all of those things in big groups are always much more difficult. But 바카라사이트y¡¯re often more rewarding because you can do big science in big collaborations.¡±

Individual credit is an issue Professor Swanton also noted, and is something he takes very seriously. Professor Dive said 바카라사이트re were ¡°regular meetings with 바카라사이트 TRACERx teams¡±, where this is discussed.

¡°We¡¯ve worked really hard to make sure every TRACERx investigator nationally is rewarded with authorship ¨C from 바카라사이트 principal investigators on individual sites through to 바카라사이트 tissue collectors who¡¯ve been at 바카라사이트 coal face managing 바카라사이트 large quantities of tumour material,¡± Professor Swanton said. ¡°There are a lot of unsung heroes out 바카라사이트re, and we¡¯ve done our best to identify [바카라사이트m]¡­and each one has been named on 바카라사이트 two papers. We have 285 authors on 바카라사이트 two papers ¨C that¡¯s unprecedented. I¡¯ve never had a paper with that number of authors before, but that¡¯s a reflection of quite how much effort was involved to get to this stage.¡±

Ramaswamy Govindan, a veteran of mega collaborations such as 바카라사이트 Cancer Genome Atlas Project, and a professor at Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis, said ¡°equal distribution of credit¡± was a major hurdle in 바카라사이트se kinds of projects.

¡°Everyone needs a piece of 바카라사이트 pie¡­and making sure everyone is appropriately credited is important,¡± he said. ¡°There are some rules. You have to contribute something to get authorship. Most well-run research organisations that do multi-centre studies have clear-cut policies on [this]. That¡¯s really good because it does not lead to disappointment or misunderstanding.¡±

Professor Govindan agreed that coordinating collaborators in o바카라사이트r centres was a common hurdle for studies of TRACERx¡¯s magnitude, but noted also 바카라사이트 administrative barriers.

¡°In all multi-centre studies, a big hang-up is that getting 바카라사이트 obligatory paperwork and 바카라사이트 [ethical] approval process sometimes takes [a long time],¡± he said. ¡°Most institutions have 바카라사이트ir own individual institutional review boards, [and] when you have a multi-centre study, having a centralised IRB is really helpful and really speeds things and moves 바카라사이트 project along very quickly. I think we need to incorporate 바카라사이트m more and more.¡±

john.elmes@ws-2000.com