Slashdot Mirror
Biden Unveils Open-Access Database To Advance Cancer Research (go.com)
An anonymous reader quotes a report from ABC News: Vice President Joe Biden unveiled a public database for clinical data on cancer on Monday that aims to help researchers and doctors better tailor new treatments to individuals. Overseen by the National Cancer Institute, the Genomic Data Commons starts with genomic and clinical data for 12,000 patients. The system is designed to increase sharing of information about the gene sequences of tumors and how patients with those tumors responded to specific treatments. "The information is scattered among different government and academic repositories. Most of it is out of the reach of scientists," Biden said. "We're bringing it into one space." Though easily searchable, the database includes protections for privacy and security, Biden said. He urged cancer experts gathered in Chicago to "upload your raw genomic data" to the system for use by fellow researchers. "All of you know it's the right thing to do," Biden said. "It's the quickest way for us to move forward. And it's not technically hard for us to do it." You can read the key features of the GDC via The White House here.
What? Oh, never mind.
Can you guess what the reaction would've been? He would've been vilified just as much as HRC, as the most hated politician in the country along with Trump, and all the handwringing of "why can't we get better choices" that goes along with it.
You have to use some imagination. I understand now he's not particularly controversial, because the right hasn't been attacking him for the last four years. But he would have been, and every bit.
Oh no, here come all the "cannabis cures cancer" nutcases
Swinging his power by his hips, trying to live forever.... Too bad he wasn't calling for this prior to ACA being passed, I wonder what that would have looked like.... Not that he has to deal with ACA since the upper class is too good to follow their own laws, you know.
.. for releasing my private genomic data? My samples were supposed to be protected!
Will never allow this to happen. They batted us
batted?
Your Honorable Mr. Biden,
We would like to thank you for your donation to our DNA database project! This has enabled us to refute claims, that your DNA could be found in the mouths of Oxford University pigs.
Unfortunately, further analysis of your DNA data has proved that you are, in fact, John Wilkes Booth, the guy who shot Abraham Lincoln, or somebody. Of course, we would all like to see a peaceful solution to this problem. But if you want to go down in a hail of bullets . . . I can recommend a Vodafone store in the High Street of Westminster (which is a pseudo-UK-city near Hursley).
. . . or, never mind . . . the Vodafone folks will never be there when you need them.
Schroedinger's Brexit: The UK is both in and out of the EU at the same time!
Insert here routine complaint that the federal government has no delegated power to fund or perform medical research.
Spells potato with an E?
About as useful as the VP who did.
Why wouldn't they upload/share the info? For profits? You're saying someone smart enough to be a Dr. would rather see profits than save someone's life? And they say they aren't in it for the money...
When I'm president, we're going to have magnificent databases. The best databases, not loser databases like Biden's. Just tremendous, tremendous databases. We'll make Latvia pay for it, and there won't be any Mexican DNA in that database either, until we can figure out what's going on. We're going to have DNA that'll make your head spin.
You are welcome on my lawn.
Seems like we just went through a widely-applauded act to block access to patient records in the name of privacy (HIPAA). National database of cancer patients -- what could possibly go wrong? (hint, the 'national database' of government employees' and contractors' clearance backgrounds, including financial information, criminal history if any, credit cards, etc. got breached last year, courtesy of Office of Personnel Management and their antiquated security measures). I think patient privacy was far better guaranteed before the push to convert all of it to digital media, 'in the name of confidentiality'.
I mean the government is actually trying to do something useful and help it's citizens. I believe this is the first time I have ever seen this from this administration. Usually they are targeting those evil white pedophile extreme racist nazis who believe they should be able to own their own land without government intervention, or those trying to sell cigarettes on the sidewalk without paying the extortion fees to the almighty house of Mammon.
You could say they helped get some people out of jail, but I am sure with this administration they let out all the hard core pusher / gang-star types and kept the stupid harmless pot heads locked up for 40 years.
This government makes money off of lottery (numbers racket), beer, alcohol, guns, kidnapping (highest incarceration rate in the world and CPS) etc. They are the real vice lords. The only people they actually protect are those who are invading the country illegally, and the major corporate donor types.
Well, I have to give props for finally doing something that does not hurt the citizens of the USA. Good job Biden. I just wish you could have done more good and less harm.
Say what you want about Putin, at least he is not actively trying to fuck his own people.
Biden is clearly the establishment backup plan in case something happens to Clinton and she is indicted by the FBI for her illegal home made mail server used for government purposes.
Trump is getting stabbed in the back quite a bit lately (not that he doesn't deserve all the stabbing).
Bernie is a threat to the establishment that must be eliminated clearly.
Personally I cheer for Gary Johnson, he has 10% of the vote already. Unfortunately there is no ancap candidate, but in a sense it would have been ironic to have one...
You can't handle the truth.
rightwingers rapidly assemble around the opposite - even for ideas they originally proposed.
Mmm... *grabs popcorn*, I am looking forward to watching the republicans become pro-cancer. I can't imagine what the arguments will look like but I bet they'll include the phrase "will of God" at least 50 times.
Unicode killed the ASCII-art *
Since cancer cells are mutated body cells, does this database store the genome of patients with some mutated loci? Or does it only store the diff between a cancer cell and a normal body cell? What exactly are the privacy guards beyond anonymization?
Actually, what might be more important than the database itself is the process of enforcing standards for how to describe a mutation. There is actually a standard set by the Human Genome Variation Society (HGVS) but it's not followed widely. In journal articles, different authors use different notation for the same mutation and, worse, often don't provide an complete specification. For example, it's common practice to report a mutation in terms of how it changes the protein which it codes for. However, many genes have alternate splicing, which means that there are different versions of the protein. A mutation might appear at a different position (or not at all) in the different versions of the protein.
Biden is clearly the establishment backup plan in case something happens to Clinton and she is indicted by the FBI for her illegal home made mail server used for government purposes.
Oh, come on. You don't still cling to that conspiracy, do you? The GOP launched an embarassingly long list of inquisitions into her email server and couldn't come up with anything criminal. Stupid, yes; criminal, no. It sure as hell won't bring down her campaign.
Bernie is a threat to the establishment that must be eliminated clearly.
What? We were told before that the DNC wanted single payer and higher taxes. Didn't you say yourself it was part of the circus? What would they have to gain by eliminating him - after all, he is bringing the young voters to the polls better than any other POTUS candidate. If Trump picks up the majority of Bernie backers Clinton is sunk.
Unfortunately there is no ancap candidate
Anarchist-capitalist? Why would you want that; just to have someone to laugh at? You're shared your beliefs and your religion with us for a long time. Compared to you the Queen of England is a fucking anarchist. A candidate from that fold would only show how tight a grip your cult has on your preferred voting segment. Would you be prepared to lose that many of your church's followers?