Participants
Patient participation is vital to The University of Texas MD Anderson Patient Mosaic™ project and to all clinical and translational research. Your participation is important to us. Find out more about what is involved and how you are protected as a research participant.
What data is involved in the effort?
Information includes genomic data analyzed from specimen samples, information from the gut microbiome and patient reported outcomes or lifestyles reported by the participant.
How can I participate in this project?
During your next appointment, ask for information about consenting to the APOLLO Protocol (2014-0938) and the Patient Mosaic Patient Reported Outcomes Protocol (2021-0837). The Patient Mosaic consenting team will reach out to you for more information.
What happens after I consent to the above protocols?
Patient Mosaic team members will collect blood when you have a laboratory sample appointment. If you have a biopsy or surgery, the team will collect extra pieces of tumor for analysis. Every three months, the Patient Mosaic Team will send a stool collection kit to you so you can collect and return stool samples, and team members will contact you and ask you to answer surveys about your physical and psychological health and your diet. These surveys will also provide feedback about your physical and psychological health.
How does my participation make a difference?
Patient Mosaic provides insight into why some patients with the same types of cancer have different outcomes despite receiving identical treatments. We will analyze the genetic and molecular variations found in each patient’s genome, tumor genome, gut microbiome and immune system. This data will be integrated with clinical, patient reported outcome and lifestyle data. The Patient Mosaic integrated dataset will allow for the acceleration of all aspects of cancer care – improving outcomes for patients – from prevention through survivorship.
The Patient Mosaic
Andrew Futreal, Ph.D.
Vice President, Strategic Translational Research Programs
Chair, Genomic Medicine
Learning from every patient is vital to the success of our mission to eliminate cancer.
What does it mean to be a research participant at MD Anderson?
Participating in research will not impact your care at MD Anderson. To be a research participant, a patient consents to research use of provided information and samples not required for clinical care.
How is my privacy protected?
Your privacy is important. MD Anderson understands patient privacy and has adopted policies to protect it. Find out more about patient privacy.
Learn more about the terms used in Patient Mosaic
What are patient reported outcomes, or PROs?
When it comes to understanding how patients feel about their own health before, during, and after their cancer treatment there is no better way than to ask the real experts: the patients themselves. Patient Mosaic uses scientifically validated questionnaires known as patient-reported outcome measures to accurately measure patient’s perceptions of their health, symptoms, and quality of life during treatment.
What kinds of patient reported outcomes or lifestyles information is Patient Mosaic tracking?
- Cancer and treatment-related symptoms
- Physical health
- Psychological health
- Health-related quality of life
- Diet
- Physical activities
What is the gut microbiome?
Bacteria, viruses, fungi and other microbes are naturally found in the gut and make up the gut microbiome. Research shows that these microbes can influence cancer treatment response. Stool samples allow researchers to investigate your gut microbiome.
What is the genome?
The genome refers to the complete set of genetic material present in a cell. Patients have their intrinsic genome and the cells found in a tumor have a distinct genome that includes the mutations that make up the tumor cells.