Data Sharing

Communicating new discoveries and sharing resources, including data and physical material generated as part of the NCI Alliance for Nanotechnology in Cancer, is of critical importance to realize the full potential of nanotechnology for the good of cancer patients. Regular communication and sharing of information needs to occur at three basic levels:

• Among institutions and investigators participating in the research activities within a given Center of Cancer Nanotechnology Excellence (CCNEs);
• Among the CCNEs and other programs that compose the Alliance; and
• Among the greater research and development communities outside the Alliance.

Research goals can only be reached by achieving advances at each level of collaboration and data sharing. Therefore, it is critical that a well-organized system of data sharing be established both within and between the Alliance to achieve not only the free exchange of data and materials for research purposes, but also the translation of research into commercially viable therapeutics and diagnostics to treat patients.

To address the challenges of data sharing, NCI has created the cancer Nanotechnology Laboratory Portal (caNanoLab), a web portal designed to facilitate data sharing in the research community.