Consortia and Clinical Trials

Innovating Trial Design for Cancer Early Detection.
IDeA-CED is a methodological initiative that develops new designs and analytic strategies for randomized cancer screening trials. Its goal is to accelerate evaluation of benefits and harms, ensuring promising biomarkers are rigorously validated and translated into effective early detection tools. The IDeA-CED leadership team is Yingqi Zhao, Yingye Zheng, and Ruth Etzioni.

Coordinating Center for Multi-Consortia Cancer Research
COMPASS (Coordination of Multi-center Projects in Analytic and Statistical Sciences) provides statistical, data, and logistical leadership for large national cancer consortia. Based at Fred Hutch, COMPASS ensures rigor, reproducibility, and harmonization across multi-site studies, advancing early detection and translational research. Yingye Zheng is the director of COMPASS.

Validating Biomarkers for Early Cancer Detection.
The Early Detection Research Network (EDRN), funded by the NCI, is a national initiative to discover, validate, and qualify biomarkers for early cancer detection and risk assessment. Fred Hutch leads the network’s Data Management and Coordinating Center (DMCC), providing logistical, informatics, and statistical support across collaborative studies and clinical utility trials. The DMCC also develops innovative statistical methods to evaluate biomarker performance and reliability. DMCC leadership includes Yingye Zheng, Ziding Feng, and Ruth Etzioni.

Tracking Prostate Cancer Progression
PASS is a multi-center cohort of men with low-risk prostate cancer managed with active surveillance. COMPASS coordinates data collection and statistical analyses, providing critical evidence to guide clinical decisions and avoid overtreatment. PI: Yingye Zheng.

Screening for Pancreatic Cancer in New-Onset Diabetes
The Early Detection Initiative evaluates whether screening people with new-onset diabetes can improve early detection of pancreatic cancer. Coordinated through COMPASS, EDI integrates clinical, imaging, and biomarker data to assess risk and optimize screening strategies.

Advancing Blood-Based Cancer Screening
The Liquid Biopsy Consortium develops and validates blood-based biomarkers and technologies for detecting cancers at earlier stages. Hutch biostatisticians provide trial design, statistical methods, and data coordination to ensure rigorous evaluation of these cutting-edge diagnostic tools.

Pancreatic Cancer Risk in Diabetes
The NOD cohort is a prospective, multi-center study of patients with new-onset diabetes, designed to clarify the link between diabetes and pancreatic cancer risk. COMPASS leads data management and analytic support, enabling harmonized analyses across institutions.

Accelerating Biomarkers into Clinical Practice
The TLC consortium brings together leading institutions to evaluate biomarkers and screening strategies for liver cancer. COMPASS provides statistical and data coordination expertise, ensuring studies are designed and analyzed to inform practice and policy.

Statistical Leadership for Practice-Changing Trials.
Fred Hutch houses the SWOG Statistics & Data Management Center (SDMC), which designs, manages, and analyzes national cooperative cancer trials. Hutch biostatisticians ensure rigor from design through publication, supporting trials that shape standards of care across prevention, treatment, and survivorship. The SWOG Team includes Michael LeBlanc, Catherine Tangen, Megan Othus, and Mike Wu.

Cataloguing Gene Functions via Scalable Null Models.
MorPhiC is a multi-center genomics consortium led by NHGRI that aims to produce a standardized catalog of molecular and cellular phenotypes for null (knockout) alleles across the human genome. In Phase 1, MorPhiC studies ~1,000 protein-coding genes using in vitro systems, combining experimental, computational, and validation efforts. Fred Hutch (as one of the Data Analysis & Validation Centers) helps validate, analyze, and integrate these data with the broader consortium. MorPhiC is led by Wei Sun, Li Hsu, and Ali Shojaie.

Evaluating Next-Gen Cancer Screening Technologies.
Fred Hutch leads both the Coordinating & Communications Center (CCC) and the Statistics & Data Management Center (SDMC) for CSRN, a multi-center NCI network. Under this umbrella, Hutch investigators develop protocols, manage recruitment, design analyses, and coordinate data for trials of multi‐cancer detection assays. The Vanguard Study is the first CSRN project to test feasibility of MCD tests in a screening population. The CCC leadership team includes Garnet Anderson, Ruth Etzioni, and Scott Ramsey. The SDMC is led by Ziding Feng, Katherine Guthrie, and Charles Kooperberg.

Translating Discoveries into Prostate Cancer Care.
The Pacific Northwest Prostate Cancer SPORE (Specialized Program of Research Excellence) unites investigators at Fred Hutch, UW, OHSU, and UBC to accelerate translational research in prostate cancer. The consortium integrates laboratory science, clinical studies, and population research to develop new strategies for prevention, early detection, and treatment. Fred Hutch leads the Biostatistics and Bioinformatics Core, with Ruth Etzioni providing statistical expertise to guide study design, data integration, and translational impact.