title: Acquire: an open-source comprehensive cancer biobanking system.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The probability of effective treatment of cancer with a targeted therapeutic can be improved for patients with defined genotypes containing actionable mutations. To this end, many human cancer biobanks are integrating more tightly with genomic sequencing facilities and with those creating and maintaining patient-derived xenografts (PDX) and cell lines to provide renewable resources for translational research.
  
  
  RESULTS
  To support the complex data management needs and workflows of several such biobanks, we developed Acquire. It is a robust, secure, web-based, database-backed open-source system that supports all major needs of a modern cancer biobank. Its modules allow for i) up-to-the-minute 'scoreboard' and graphical reporting of collections; ii) end user roles and permissions; iii) specimen inventory through caTissue Suite; iv) shipping forms for distribution of specimens to pathology, genomic analysis and PDX/cell line creation facilities; v) robust ad hoc querying; vi) molecular and cellular quality control metrics to track specimens' progress and quality; vii) public researcher request; viii) resource allocation committee distribution request review and oversight and ix) linkage to available derivatives of specimen.
authors.affiliation: Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center, Department of Medicine, Section of Hematology and Oncology and Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
authors.forename: Heidi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Dowst
authors.affiliation: Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center, Department of Medicine, Section of Hematology and Oncology and Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
authors.forename: Benjamin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Pew
authors.affiliation: Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center, Department of Medicine, Section of Hematology and Oncology and Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Watkins
authors.affiliation: Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center, Department of Medicine, Section of Hematology and Oncology and Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
authors.forename: Apollo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: McOwiti
authors.affiliation: Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center, Department of Medicine, Section of Hematology and Oncology and Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
authors.forename: Jonathan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Barney
authors.affiliation: Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center, Department of Medicine, Section of Hematology and Oncology and Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
authors.forename: Shijing
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Qu
authors.affiliation: Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center, Department of Medicine, Section of Hematology and Oncology and Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center, Department of Medicine, Section of Hematology and Oncology and Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center, Department of Medicine, Section of Hematology and Oncology and Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
authors.forename: Lauren B
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Becnel
mesh_terms: D018070:Biological Specimen Banks; D019295:Computational Biology / Q000379:methods; D057225:Data Mining / Q000379:methods*; D003628:Database Management Systems; D016208:Databases, Factual; D023281:Genomics; D006801:Humans; D016247:Information Storage and Retrieval / Q000379:methods*; D009369:Neoplasms; D011786:Quality Control; D012984:Software; D014584:User-Computer Interface