In news
The Minister of Science and Technology virtually inaugurated the 2ndTCGA 2020 conference in New Delhi
Key highlights of the TCGA conference
- It is a landmark cancer genomics program that molecularly characterized over 20,000 primary cancer and matched normal samples spanning 33 cancer types.
- TCGA was established in 2006 with the joint effort between the US- National Cancer Institute and the National Human Genome Research Institute
- TCGA is bringing together researchers from diverse disciplines and multiple institutions.
- Over the years, TCGA generated over 2.5 petabytes of genomic, epigenomic, transcriptomic, and proteomic data.
- The data, which has already led to improvements in the ability to diagnose, treat, and prevent cancer, will remain publicly available for anyone in the research community to use.
- On similar lines, the establishment of an ‘Indian Cancer Genomics Atlas (ICGA)’ has been initiated by a consortium of key stakeholders in India led by CSIR, Government of India in which several government agencies, cancer hospitals, academic institutions and private sector partners.
Significance
Establishment of the Indian Cancer Genomics Atlas (ICGA) is a much-needed initiative and will add value to India and to the world of science in terms of cancer treatment.
Source: PIB & Better India
