2/2020
vol. 12
abstract:
Original paper
SKIN-COBRA (Consortium for Brachytherapy data Analysis) ontology: The first step towards interdisciplinary standardized data collection for personalized oncology in skin cancer
Valentina Lancellotta
1
,
Alessandro Di Stefani
5, 6
,
Stefano Gentileschi
6, 7
,
Francesco Federico
6, 8
,
Arenas Meritxell
12, 13
,
Silvia Rodriguez Villalba
14
,
Giuseppe Ferdinando Colloca
1
,
Nicola Dino Capocchiano
1
,
Vincenzo Valentini
1, 6
,
1.
Fondazione Policlinico Universitario “A. Gemelli” IRCCS, UOC Radioterapia Oncologica, Dipartimento di Diagnostica per Immagini,
Radioterapia Oncologica ed Ematologia, Roma, Italy
2.
Department of Radiation Oncology, Foundation Instituto Valenciano de Oncologia
(I.V.O.), Valencia, Spain
3.
The Christie NHS Foundation Trust, Department of Clinical Oncology, Manchester, United Kingdom
4.
The University
of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
5.
Fondazione Policlinico Universitario “A. Gemelli” IRCCS, Istituto di Dermatologia, Roma, Italy
6.
Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Roma, Italia
7.
Fondazione Policlinico Universitario “A. Gemelli” IRCCS, Dipartimento Scienze della
Salute della Donna e del Bambino, Unità di Chirurgia Plastica, Roma, Italy
8.
Fondazione Policlinico Universitario “A. Gemelli” IRCCS, Institute
of Pathology, Roma, Italy
9.
Fondazione Policlinico Universitario “A. Gemelli” IRCCS, Medical Oncology, Roma, Italy
10.
Foundation IMOR,
Department of Radiation Oncology, Barcelona, Spain
11.
Greater Poland Cancer Centre, Brachytherapy Department, Poznań, Poland
12.
Hospital
Universitari Sant Joan de Reus, Radiation Oncology Department, Tarragona, Spain
13.
Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Tarragona, Spain
14.
Hospital
Clinica Benidorm, Department of Radiation Oncology, Alicante, Spain
15.
University of Lübeck/UKSH-CL, Interdisciplinary Brachytherapy Unit,
Lübeck, Germany
16.
Gemelli-INTERACTS, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Roma, Italy
J Contemp Brachytherapy 2020; 12, 2: 105–110
Online publish date: 2020/04/30
Purpose The primary objective of the SKIN-COBRA (Consortium for Brachytherapy data Analysis) ontology is to define a specific terminological system to standardize data collection for non-melanoma skin cancer patients treated with brachytherapy (BT, interventional radiotherapy). Through ontological characterization of information, it is possible to find, isolate, organize, and integrate its meaning.
Material and methods SKIN-COBRA is a standardized data collection consortium for non-melanoma skin patients treated with BT, including 8 cancer centers. Its ontology was firstly defined by a multicentric and multidisciplinary working group and evaluated by the consortium, followed by a multi-professional technical commission involving a mathematician, an engineer, a physician with experience in data storage, a programmer, and a software expert.
Results Two hundred and ninety variables were defined in 10 input forms. There are 3 levels, with each offering a specific type of analysis: 1. Registry level (epidemiology analysis); 2. Procedures level (standard oncology analysis); 3. Research level (radiomics analysis). The ontology was approved by the technical commission and consortium, and an ad-hoc software system was defined to be implemented in the SKIN-COBRA consortium.
Conclusions Large databases are natural extension of traditional statistical approaches, a valuable and increasingly necessary tool for modern healthcare system. Future analysis of the collected multinational and multicenter data will show whether the use of the system can produce high-quality evidence to support multidisciplinary management of non-melanoma skin cancer and utilizing this information for personalized treatment decisions.
keywords:
brachytherapy, ontology, skin cancer
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