Process

Refer to the Frequently Asked Questions section for an overview of the process for requesting data from the UPMC Network Cancer Registry.

Requests Including Biological Materials

If the request includes a need for biological materials and/or data annotation, interested individuals must first communicate directly with the Pitt Biospecimen Core (PBC). You will need to submit your request for biological materials to the PBC Project Management Tool.

Requests Including Data Annotation

If the request includes a need for data annotation, interested individuals may communicate directly with representatives from the UPMC Network Cancer Registry / Registry Information Services (RIS) by sending an email outlining the details of the request.

General Requests	Sharon Winters, MS, CTR	winterssb@upmc.edu
Research Requests	Althea Schneider, BS, CTR	schneideram2@upmc.edu
Mesothelioma	Althea Schneider, BS, CTR	schneideram2@upmc.edu
Breast & Gynecologic Cancers	Louise Mazur, CTR	mazurls@upmc.edu
Head and Neck Cancers	Jennifer Ridge Hetrick, BS, CTR	hetrickjl@upmc.edu
Thoracic and Lung Cancers	Karla Stewart, CTR	stewartkj@upmc.edu
Melanomas	Kerry Trent, CTR	trentkr@upmc.edu

Details of the request should include:

• Date needed: include any specific deadline and please allow for at least two (2) weeks to process
• Purpose: describe if the request is related to a quality or research project
• Project Title: define a title for the project; if it is related to an IRB submission, use the name of the IRB-approved project
• Requestor: provide the full name, email address and phone number of the requestor
• Recipient: provide the full name, email address and phone number of the person who is to receive the data
• Biological Needs: describe if a submission has already been made to the HSTB; if this is the case, the HSTB representatives will work with RIS
• Protected Health Information (PHI): if the request includes protected health information (name, social security number, date of birth, other dates), justification must be provided for permitting disclosure of this information.  This includes approval by the UPMC Steering Committee or an expedited IRB-approval.  See below for further information.
• Range of Years Needed: define the time frame for the data needed
• UPMC Facilities to Include: define which UPMC facilities should be included; refer to ABOUT THE UPMC NETWORK CANCER REGISTRY > FACILITIES
• Data Needed: Describe the general data needed based on the following categories
  • Demographics (gender, race, age at diagnosis, zip/county of residence)
  • Diagnosis (primary site, morphology, grade, laterality, date of diagnosis)
  • Extent of Disease (AJCC stage, tumor size, lymph node involvement, distant metastasis at diagnosis, prognostic factors)
  • First Course of Treatment (dates and type of treatment including biopsy, cancer directed surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, immunotherapy, hormone therapy, other)
  • Outcomes (date of last contact/death, vital status, cancer status, date of first recurrence, type of first recurrence, subsequent treatment)