OCRA is proud to announce the launch of the Rare Ovarian Cancer Collaborative Analytics (ROCCA) Platform, an international federated data network funded by OCRA to connect researchers globally and accelerate breakthroughs in rare ovarian cancer research.
A collaborative approach to research for rare ovarian cancer
ROCCA is launching with two foundational projects: one in mucinous ovarian carcinoma (MOC) and one in low-grade serous ovarian cancer (LGSOC).
Are you a researcher with data on rare ovarian cancers? Researchers with relevant data are invited to complete the Data Gallery survey to express interest in joining the network.
Rare ovarian cancers such as MOC and LGSOC are too rare for any single institution to study on its own. ROCCA aims to overcome this barrier through a federated model, where each site keeps its own data secure locally, runs standardized analyses, and only shares summary results and statistical parameters, with no individual-level data ever leaving its institution.
Rare ovarian cancers have long been understudied, in large part because no single institution has enough patient data to draw meaningful conclusions. OCRA is proud to support this promising, collaborative approach to connecting data—and we see strong potential for it to work in tandem with OCRA’s recently launched Community Accelerated Research Exchange, helping to accelerate breakthroughs and improve outcomes for patients.
audra moran, president & CEO, ocra
The Researchers Behind ROCCA
The platform is led by Aline Talhouk, PhD, whose work at the intersection of data science and gynecologic health laid the groundwork for ROCCA’s federated model.
Rare cancer research faces real obstacles—small patient populations, data scattered across institutions, different definitions, different formats, different systems … What if progress comes from connection rather than consolidation? That is why we built a federated data network.
Aline Talhouk, PhD, Assistant Professor, University of British Columbia, and ROCCA Coordinating Center Lead
The ROCCA Steering Committee includes leading gynecologic cancer researchers from MD Anderson Cancer Center, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, UNSW Sydney, Cedars-Sinai Medical Centers, and more.
Knowledge of low-grade serous ovarian cancer has advanced only in the past two decades, and therapeutic options remain limited … A network across multiple investigative groups has the potential to substantially accelerate knowledge generation and enable more rapid, robust insights into this disease.
David Gershenson, MD, Professor, MD Anderson Cancer Center, International Consortium for Low-Grade Serous Ovarian Cancer Research, and member of ROCCA Steering Committee
The biggest issue for mucinous ovarian cancer is the lack of robust information about patient response to treatments … By connecting data from global resources, we can perform a very powerful analysis to support the best choice of treatment for patients.
Kylie Gorringe, PhD, Group Leader and Program Head, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, and member of ROCCA Steering Committee
How Researchers Can Participate in ROCCA
ROCCA is actively recruiting research institutions and investigators to join the network. If you work with data on rare ovarian cancers, your participation could be transformative.
Start by completing the Data Gallery and Expression of Interest Form online – a five-minute survey to share information about your data and express interest in joining the ROCCA network.
To learn more about how ROCCA works, visit https://roccaplatform.org/.
Support for ROCCA is generously provided in part by Verastem.
