Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium (MMRC) Names LabVantage as Preferred Biobanking Partner
The Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium (MMRC) announced today that it has selected LabVantage Solutions, Inc., a leading provider of biospecimen management solutions, to serve as its preferred biobanking partner. Under this partnership, LabVantage has implemented its Sapphire BioBanking Solution to support the collection, banking, and tracking of biospecimens through the MMRC Tissue Bank and to support related data generated by MMRC research and discovery efforts.
Tailored by LabVantage for the MMRC, this cutting-edge biobanking solution will streamline and optimize the MMRC’s collaborative research efforts by providing intricate chain of custody for biospecimen transfers, detailed location and shipment management of biospecimens, aliquot, derivative, and pooled sample tracking, and electronic signature capture upon transfer and disposition of biospecimens. These functions will ensure that the MMRC Tissue Bank remains in compliance with government regulated Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) and will guarantee that biospecimens used in MMRC research and discovery efforts are of the very highest quality.
“Accurate, quality-focused, and efficient management of biospecimens and related clinical and experimental data by this solution will play an invaluable role in the MMRC’s ability to rapidly advance pre-clinical projects, clinical trials, and correlative studies,” said Steven Young, Executive Director, MMRC.
LabVantage’s Sapphire BioBanking Solution also enables the MMRC to manage comprehensive clinical data, medical histories, and critical genomic and phenotypic data associated with biospecimens under compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), other regulatory requirements, and Good Clinical Practices (GCP).
“The Sapphire BioBanking Solution will enhance the MMRC’s ability to manage the increasing number of biospecimens accrued into the MMRC Tissue Bank and used across MMRC laboratories-functions that are essential in advancing the MMRC’s research and drug development efforts,” said Jim Aurelio, President & CEO, LabVantage. “We are pleased that MMRC was able to implement Sapphire in less than two months, enabling the benefits of the solution to be realized by MMRC and, ultimately multiple myeloma patients, that much sooner,” he added.
About the MMRC Tissue Bank
The MMRC Tissue Bank is the only resource of its kind that provides researchers with the critical mass of high-quality myeloma tissue samples and related biospecimens necessary to rapidly advance research and drug discovery efforts. Notably, all tissue accrued into the MMRC Tissue Bank is uniformly collected and stored in adherence with Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) standards and under the governance of more than 60 standard operating procedures.
With nearly 600 patient tissue samples accrued to date and ongoing accrual at sites nationwide, researchers for the first time have access to the critical mass of tissue necessary to support important genomic studies, robust pre-clinical validation efforts, and critical correlative analyses.
About the Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium (MMRC)
The Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium (MMRC) is a 509a3 non-profit organization that integrates leading academic institutions to accelerate drug development in multiple myeloma. It is comprised of the MMRC and 11 member institutions: City of Hope National Medical Center, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Emory University’s Winship Cancer Institute, Hackensack University Medical Center, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, Mayo Clinic, Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, St. Vincent’s Comprehensive Cancer Center of Saint Vincent Catholic Medical Centers of New York, University Health Network (Princess Margaret Hospital), and University of Chicago.
The MMRC was founded in 2004 by Kathy Giusti, a myeloma patient, and with the help of the scientific community, as an optimal research model to rapidly address critical challenges in accelerating drug development and explore opportunities in the most promising areas of myeloma research-genomics, compound validation, and clinical trials. The MMRC is the only consortium to join academic institutions through membership agreements, customized IT systems, and an integrated tissue bank. For more information, please visit http://www.themmrc.org/ .
