The NCITA Infrastructure is composed of three cross-institutional units, which work in synergy to provide an integrated pipeline for the development of quality assured cancer imaging biomarkers for clinical use.
Clinical Trials Unit
The NCITA Trials Unit complements conventional clinical trials units (CTUs) by providing integrated expertise in imaging-specific trial design, implementation and statistical support.
The NCITA Trials Unit will develop standardised protocols and unified contracts necessary to straddle multicentre trial sites.
Quality Assurance
and Quality Control Unit
The QA/QC Unit support development of imaging biomarkers from first-in-man application to achieving multi-site reproducibility assessment. Activities include evidence assessment, technical validation, biological validation with clinical samples, single centre repeatability, multi-centre reproducibility and staged imaging biomarker lock down (image acquisition and processing), working in conjunction with the NCITA Repository Unit.
The QA/QC unit is cross-institutional to leverage the core strengths in chemistry, PET, MRI and PET-MRI at University of Manchester, KCL, Imperial and ICR.
Image Repository Unit
The Repository Unit will provide a repository data management service, where images with appropriate and comprehensive imaging biomarker datasets are deposited. Patients consent will be obtained upfront to have their image data deposited and shared.
The Repository unit, in conjunction with the QA/QC unit, will develop harmonised image processing and AI analysis tools to create a qualified imaging biomarker pipeline.