About the Portal

The Cancer Complexity Knowledge Portal is an open access, public data repository that stores and shares resources generated by multiple collaborative programs focused on the most perplexing issues in cancer research.

This application was developed and is maintained through a joint effort by Sage Bionetworks, the Cancer Systems Biology Consortium (CSBC), and Physical Sciences in Oncology Network (PS-ON), sponsored by the NIH National Cancer Institute. Together, these make up the CSBC/PS-ON Coordinating Center, which aims to increase our understanding of tumor biology, treatment options, and patient outcome.

Cancer systems biology is an effort to use computational analysis and mathematical modeling to describe and understand cancer mechanisms in a deeply multivariate way, and to predict the consequences of interventions on disease. Physical oncology applies physical science-based theories and experimental techniques to complement and advance our current understanding of cancer biology and oncology, particularly in the areas of spatio-temporal organization and physical dynamics of cancer.

These richly interdisciplinary fields of study are uniquely poised to address fundamental questions in cancer research, including:

predicting the impact of multiple genetic and epigenetic changes on cellular phenotype, tumor dynamics and evolution
evaluating the impact of inter- and intra-tumor heterogeneity on treatment options and patient outcome
understanding the multifaceted biology underlying metastasis and tumor dormancy
studying the complexity of tumor-stroma or tumor-immune system interactions
quantifying the contribution of the altered physical environment on tumor initiation, progression, and metastasis
predicting sensitivity and resistance to drugs and multi-drug combinations to inform patient care

Cancer Complexity Knowledge Portal ↔︎ Synapse ↔︎ Sage Bionetworks

How do Sage Bionetworks, Synapse, and the Cancer Complexity Knowledge Portal fit together? Let’s break this down:

Sage Bionetworks	First, there’s Sage Bionetworks - a name you may or may not have come across. While Sage is not a tool you’ll be using, you should know who we are: a non-profit organization based out of Seattle, Washington. Serving as the data coordinating center for CSBC and PS-ON, Sage supports engagement and resource sharing within this community through maintenance of the Cancer Complexity Knowledge Portal. Sage is dedicated to promoting and advancing open science, as well as engaging patients in the research process. You can learn more about Sage Bionetworks and its initiatives here.
Synapse	In line with advocating for open science, Sage developed a software platform called Synapse. This platform is what allows for collaborative data curation and analysis, computational modeling, and more. It allows users to upload, store, analyze, and track data in a private space, before releasing it to the public-facing Cancer Complexity Knowledge Portal. Think of Synapse as the back-end for all the data to live in.
Cancer Complexity Knowledge Portal	If Synapse is the back-end for data, the Cancer Complexity Knowledge Portal is the front. It’s essentially the user interface (UI) or entry point for you to view data, resources, and other shared content. Data and other resources are uploaded into Synapse, where it is then processed into readable form for you to access in the portal.

Questions? Need additional help?

Please feel free to contact us by email at mc2center@sagebase.org.