DW4TR: A Data Warehouse for Translational Research.

The linkage between the clinical and laboratory research domains is a key issue in translational research. Integration of clinicopathologic data alone is a major task given the number of data elements involved. For a translational research environment, it is critical to make these data usable at the point-of-need. Individual systems have been developed to meet the needs of particular projects though the need for a generalizable system has been recognized. Increased use of Electronic Medical Record data in translational research will demand generalizing the system for integrating clinical data to support the study of a broad range of human diseases. To ultimately satisfy these needs, we have developed a system to support multiple translational research projects. This system, the Data Warehouse for Translational Research (DW4TR), is based on a light-weight, patient-centric modularly-structured clinical data model and a specimen-centric molecular data model. The temporal relationships of the data are also part of the model. The data are accessed through an interface composed of an Aggregated Biomedical-Information Browser (ABB) and an Individual Subject Information Viewer (ISIV) which target general users. The system was developed to support a breast cancer translational research program and has been extended to support a gynecological disease program. Further extensions of the DW4TR are underway. We believe that the DW4TR will play an important role in translational research across multiple disease types.

Addressing informatics challenges in Translational Research with workflow technology.

Interest in Translational Research has been growing rapidly in recent years. In this collision of different data, technologies and cultures lie tremendous opportunities for the advancement of science and business for organisations that are able to integrate, analyse and deliver this information effectively to users. Workflow-based integration and analysis systems are becoming recognised as a fast and flexible way to build applications that are tailored to scientific areas, yet are built on a common platform. Workflow systems are allowing organisations to meet the key informatics challenges in Translational Research and improve disease understanding and patient care.