Administrative Core

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT The Administrative Core (Core A) has fulfilled three major functions during the current grant, and will continue to do so in this renewal. One function is the overall management of the P01, which is the responsibility of the PI, Steven Balk, with an administrator and in consultation with the other PIs. This includes addressing all administrative issues, organizing group meetings, organizing internal and external reviews, and in general facilitating communications and collaborations. The second function of the Core has been to assist the Projects in efforts to ensure that their laboratory studies and findings are physiologically significant, and ultimately to translate their findings into patients. This has been facilitated by close interactions with our clinicians, represented by our internal advisory board. Through previous/ongoing clinical trials and tissue banking efforts at their respective institutions, these clinical investigators have collected (and continue to collect) valuable samples from patients at varying stages of their disease and after varying therapies. In discussions with the Project Leaders, they have provided relevant clinical samples for analysis and have provided further insight into potential biological significance of laboratory findings. The third Core function is to provide statistical support for each of the Project Leaders in their experimental designs. The Specific Aims are 1) Provide administrative support to insure that the goals of the project are achieved, 2) Assist in translating the results from each Project into the clinic, 3) Provide biostatistical support for each Project.