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Worldwide Innovative Network Consortium: Building a Common Global Cancer Database

Farahnak F, El-Deiry WS, Lussier YA, Kurzrock R, Magidi S, Bresson C, Enger SA, Liu J et al.

JCO global oncology, 2026

Abstract

This review shares the ongoing work of the global Worldwide Innovative Network (WIN) Consortium for Precision Medicine to synthesize emerging cancer treatment data and to define the requirements for a common global cancer database that can truly support precision oncology. We performed a narrative review of emerging cancer treatment data, molecular profiling technologies, and existing clinicogenomic databases, focusing on how tumors are characterized, how subgroups are defined, and how demographic, lifestyle, and environmental factors are captured. The growth in molecular profiling technologies and the development of new targeted therapies are transforming cancer care. Tumors, regardless of tissue origin, are increasingly defined as composites of multiple, often rare, subgroups, each with distinct biology and likely response to specific therapies, based on multidimensional profiling of the tumor and its microenvironment. The solution lies in building vast databases that capture racial and ethnic diversity, reflected in genomic data, as well as diet and lifestyle factors that may have epigenetic impact on gene expression and post-translational modifications. A truly inclusive and informative data set must reflect global diversity, and there are multiple examples of demography-dependent differences in genomic signals. With members caring for and studying patients with cancer across five continents, WIN is actively exploring pathways to create a global cancer database, rich in…

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