News

Spotlight on Two Young Tissue Donors

Breast cancer: Two words no one wants to hear, but one in eight women in the U.S. will be diagnosed with it in their lifetime. It’s a diagnosis that does not discriminate against age, ethnicity, or gender, and that is where the important work of the Susan G. Komen Tissue Bank at the Indiana U[...]

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KTB Facilitating New Breast Cancer Study

At our next two tissue collection events (coming up on April 27th and October 19th in Indianapolis) the KTB will be helping to facilitate at new study conducted by Dr. Tarah Ballinger and her team. We know that exercise is associated with a reduced risk of breast cancer. What we don’t know is[...]

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ShareForCures: Empowering Breast Cancer Research

In July of 2023, the Susan G. Komen® organization (around the office, we call them “Big Komen”) launched ShareForCures, a groundbreaking breast cancer research registry. What was not publicly shared until the launch was that the Komen Tissue Bank had been asked to ha[...]

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KTB Holds 3rd Think Tank

On Friday, November 10th of last year, the KTB held its third Think Tank at the Sheraton Indianapolis Keystone at the Crossing, attended by almost 50 breast cancer researchers, scientists, and other interested parties from across the United States. Some had already conducted studies using KTB sampl[...]

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KTB…ABC…123 (4-14-24)

On this page we highlight information and/or events that just don’t need much space to be interesting or effective. Reading this page will keep you “in the know.” A is for our AMAZING new website which will launch on April 30. We will now be incorporated within the IU Simon Compre[...]

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Tableau Visualization

Tableau is widely recognized as one of the premier data visualization tools in the world. Our KTB data team employs it to generate interactive reports that effectively summarize, analyze, and monitor our data. Once data is visualized, it is usually more understandable. Below are several KTB data vi[...]

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Meet the Researcher: Neil Carleton

The KTB is pleased to introduce you to Neil Carleton, currently in his fourth year of training for an MD/PhD at the University of Pittsburgh.  Note: We provide an ongoing glossary just in case you need some explanation of terms.  Q: How did you find out about the Komen Tissue Bank, and wh[...]

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Sam Rysdyk at the Hackathon

Note: We provide an ongoing glossary just in case you need some explanation of terms. Several weekends ago, BC2 and KTB IT Project Manager Sam Rysdyk had the pleasure and unique experience of attending the Komen Breast Cancer Hackathon 2023 in Dallas, TX. The hackathon was a weekend-long challenge [...]

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KTB…ABC…123 (8/21/2023)

On this page we highlight information and/or events that just don’t need much space to be interesting or effective. Reading this page will keep you “in the know”. A is for our AMAZING KTB Virtual Tissue Bank (VTB), which is an important but underused feature easily found on our we[...]

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Ladies and Gentlemen . . Michele Côté!

Some of you may have already heard that our amazing Executive Director, Anna Maria Storniolo, M.D., is semi-retiring from IU, and stepping down from her duties with the Komen Tissue Bank. Dr. Storniolo, along with Connie Rufenbarger, co-founded the KTB, and has been its heartbeat more than 15 years[...]

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WAIT . . . WHAT?? The KTB to collect from Men!

The KTB has very exciting news! WE WILL SOON BE RECRUITING MALE PARTICIPANTS to donate healthy breast tissue! Why is this happening? Good question. Here are a few reasons: Since only 1% of breast cancer patients are men, the disease is severely understudied in males. Although the survival rate of [...]

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Meet the Researcher: Lexie White

The KTB is pleased to introduce you to Dr. Lexie White, NIH Stadtman Investigator, who requested and worked with data from KTB participants as well as from a previously studied cohort. Q: How did you find out about the Komen Tissue Bank, and why did it interest you? I found out about KTB at a scie[...]

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Highlighting the Importance of Data Visualization

Since 2007, the KTB has collected donors’ self-reported medical history information and data generated from research performed with samples donated by over 9,000 women. However, until recently, this rich and interesting data has not been accessible for easy viewing. Enter Jenny Cui, our KTB D[...]

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KTB…ABC…123 (8/30/22)

On this page we highlight information and/or events that just don’t need much space to be interesting or effective. Reading this page will keep you “in the know”. A is for adjustment to change! In the summer of 2021, the KTB joined three other biobanking entities within the IU Sim[...]

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The What - Tissue Collection Event

The Komen Tissue Bank is thrilled to confirm our first collection of healthy breast tissue in 2½ years! Since you are already receiving our newsletter, we can assume you are no stranger to the KTB, our mission, and the importance of our work. However, a little information refresher never hurt[...]

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The When - KTB Tissue Collection Event is April 23, 2022

All eligible women are invited to donate, but we are particularly seeking Black and Brown (e.g., African American, Latina, Asian) biological females, as our sample inventory for those groups was severely depleted during the COVID-19 pandemic. The KTB tissue collection will be held at the IU Simon [...]

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The How – Meet the Researcher

While clinical research is clearly important to preventing and finding new treatments for breast cancer, we must also understand that applied health communication research is crucial to recruitment. Applied health communication research is a social science that focuses on creating effective commun[...]

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The Why – Recent KTB Clinical Discoveries

The KTB exists to promote and support clinical research. Therefore, we consider it important for our donors, volunteers, funders, and friends to have access to the results of the important work facilitated by our tissue samples. Here, we highlight three recently published research articles using K[...]

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BC2 - Biospecimen Collection and Biobanking Core

We have very exciting news! As many of you know, the KTB is part of the IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center (IUSCCC). There are many biobanks under the IUSCCC umbrella. In order to best serve their members, and to help eliminate redundancies among the various entities that currently collect sampl[...]

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KTB...123!

    ONE:Please join us and help support the work of the KTB by shopping for a cause! You can help fund our work while picking out some beautiful Kendra Scott jewelry for yourself or as a gift. Join in on the fun on Monday, October 18th from 5-8pm at the Fashion Mall at Keystone. If you wo[...]

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LifeOmic

LifeOmic is a healthcare IT startup focused on improving health and healthcare options and outcomes through sharing complex genomic data sets. LifeOmic’s platform is called the Precision Health Cloud (PHC). The KTB is working with LifeOmic and has uploaded the entire whole genome sequencing [...]

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Sanchita Bhatnagar Interview

The KTB is pleased to introduce you to Dr. Sanchita Bhatnagar, who requested and received KTB samples to work with in her lab at the University of Virginia.   Q: How did you find out about the Komen Tissue Bank, and why did it interest you? Komen Tissue Bank is very well known for its contrib[...]

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International Encyclopedia of Health Communication

The KTB is dedicated to doing our part to ensure that women of color are robustly represented in our samples. This task falls on Kathi Ridley Merriweather, who is hyper-focused on community outreach and recruitment to our clinical trial. Below is a recent encyclopedia entry written by Kathi, which[...]

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Longitudinal Study Sample Science-April 22nd

The Komen Tissue Bank will host a second edition of Sample Science, a virtual event, on April 22, 2021, at 5:00 pm EST. Join Dr. Rulla Tamimi, Chief of Epidemiology at Weill Cornell Sandra and Edward Meyer Cancer Center. Dr. Tamimi will explain the importance of longitudinal studies to medical res[...]

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Recent Research with KTB samples

The following describes and explains (KTB lab scientist) Dr. Natascia Marino’s most recently published article, Upregulation of lipid metabolism genes in the breast prior to cancer diagnosis; Marino, et. al, 2020. For years, researchers have been looking for signs of changes in the breast th[...]

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The Komen Tissue Bank’s Virtual Tissue Bank Resource

The Komen Tissue Bank (KTB) is the only repository in the world for normal breast tissue and matched serum, plasma and DNA. We are committed to making a difference by acting as advocates for thinking, sharing and understanding NORMAL.  A part of the KTB’s resources is the Virtual Tissue [...]

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Conversations About Race

  In response to the protests and racial unrest this summer, the KTB team came together as colleagues and as “family” and have started “Conversations on Race”, a series wherein the team gathers monthly to discuss a focused topic culled from many different media. The tu[...]

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KTB...ABC...123

  A is for Asher…Gena Asher, Consumer Advocate, that is. COVID required we pivot our goals temporarily from events and allowed us to focus on some projects that are just as important. Gena, one of our KTB Consumer Advocates, possesses formidable journalistic skills and has already prove[...]

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You're Invited to the KTB Sample Science Event

The Komen Tissue Bank is planning to host a virtual event to share current news and information about the KTB, collection events, our staff, etc. with our donors and volunteers. This event will be held on October 1st at 5 pm Eastern time. Please register in advance for this meeting: https://iu.zoom[...]

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KTB Lab Receives Exciting Deliveries from Qiagen

If you need definitions of terms you may find here, try opening our glossary. In June, thanks to the generous funding of the Peachey Prevention Fund and the Alana H. Weston-Matilda Jane Clothing Breast Cancer Research Fund at the IU Foundation (“Weston-Matilda Jane Fund”), the[...]

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We Are Nothing Without Our Researchers

THIS is why you donated tissue, or volunteered, or gave financial support, or requested samples, or supported us in-kind. This is why we are here. This is #ThePowerOfNormal. Would you like to meet some of our fabulous researchers, and hear a bit about the work they are doing with KTB samples? Read [...]

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Meet Our Trio of New KTB Consumer Advocates

For 14 years after she co-founded the Komen Tissue Bank, Connie Rufenbarger gave her all to the KTB as its Consumer Advocate. Connie was an advocate for the KTB like no other could be; she was everywhere doing everything she could do for us at all times. Connie has now decided to “retire&#82[...]

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KTB Scavenger Hunt

Test your knowledge and take this Komen Tissue Bank Social Media and Website quiz! Don’t worry… you can use your resources.   If you have not already, follow us (@KomenTissueBank) on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram and visit our website at https://komentissuebank.iu.edu/[...]

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KTB...ABC...123

  A is for... April. Our lovely Intern, April Giron, graduated this May with a degree in Public Health. April has spent two years with us, and we are proud of her and all of her hard work! April has followed up her graduation with a quiet courthouse wedding to her longtime boyfriend/fianc&#[...]

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What’s New? Komen Tissue Bank Happenings

  Indy KTB Collection Event is November 16th, 2019 Our final tissue collection event of 2019 will be held in Indianapolis on November 16th. This will likely be the last event held in our home location for about a year, as we are planning a Bloomington IN event for the spring of 2020. Donor [...]

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Ladies and Gentlemen…Here’s Pam!

  Meet Pam Rockey, Biospecimen Manager and newest member of the KTB Team Hello!  I’m very excited to be a part of the amazing work happening at KTB!  I am originally from Greenville, Illinois, but moved to Indianapolis for my first job after completing a master’s degr[...]

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KTB…A-B-C… 1-2-3!

A is for the Amelia Project. Researchers from around the Indiana area converged in Kokomo on March 23 to collaborate and hear about new breakthroughs in breast cancer research. We are very proud of our intern Ashley Vode, who presented our poster titled: KTB: Thinking, sharing and understanding [...]

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A Cancer Initiation Study Using Immunofluorescence

Notes from the KTB Lab Not at your best with scientific terminology? Don’t let that keep you from understanding. If any of our researchers’ vocabulary throws you for a loop, just click on this glossary to see if you can find a definition. In the search for new preventive st[...]

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What’s New? Komen Tissue Bank Happenings

In 2014, the KTB was fortunate to receive support for an Indianapolis tissue collection event from the Women’s Philanthropy initiative at the IU Foundation. The program, directed by IU’s First Lady Laurie Burns McRobbie (pictured here between KTB COO Jill Henry, and KTB Executive Direct[...]

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This is Why You Give: Your Healthy Breast Tissue at Work

Thanks in part to the Susan G. Komen Foundation, a major funder of the Komen Tissue Bank, an exciting new clinical trial is now open to patients with aggressive breast cancer. We are excited to share with you news of the opening of a first-of-its-kind clinical trial for metastatic triple negative b[...]

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The Road to a Longitudinal Study

Announcement! The Komen Tissue Bank has become a longitudinal study! What does that mean? According to WhatIs.com, a longitudinal study “ is an observational research method in which data is gathered for the same subjects repeatedly over a period of time. Longitudinal research projects can ex[...]

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Meet A Researcher Series – Zeynep Madak-Erdogan, PhD

Interview with Zeynep Madak-Erdogan, PhD, Asst. Professor, Dept. of food Sciences and Human Nutrition, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Not at your best with scientific terminology? Don’t let that keep you from understanding. If any of our researchers’ vocabulary throws you f[...]

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KTB…A-B-C… 1-2-3!

In this 1,2,3 – A,B,C section we update you with several interesting pieces of KTB news as well as event notifications. ONE: The KTB is back in Indianapolis with back-to-back tissue collection events. The November 3, 2018 event at the Simon Cancer Center Woman’s Clinic was a wonder[...]

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Join the KTB on Social Media

Have you liked us on Facebook yet, or followed us on Twitter or Instagram? If you haven’t, please do so. Believe it or not, this is a quick and easy – not to mention cost effective – way to support the KTB.  Showing that we have a decent social media following can increase o[...]

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Introducing the KTB Early Life Questionnaire

Early-life characteristics such as childhood body shape, pubertal timing, and growth spurts are factors that have been previously identified as being related to a woman’s likelihood of developing breast cancer later in life. Now, several KTB researchers from different institutions have coll[...]

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The KTB “Welcomes” One of Its Own

Congratulations to Julia McCarty, newly promoted to the position of Events and Regulatory Coordinator. Julia replaces Amy Trullinger, who has moved to a different position within IU. It could be argued that Julia knows more about the KTB than any other staff member. She began during the Indy Supe[...]

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Natascia Marino Presents Poster at AACR 2018 Annual Meeting

In April, BCRF Investigator in Breast Cancer Research Natascia Marino, PhD, attended the American Association of Cancer Researchers (AACR) annual meeting in Chicago. Dr. Marino, an Assistant Professor in the Hematology/Oncology Division at the Indiana University School of Medicine, works exclusiv[...]

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Meet Researchers Who Have Used KTB Samples

Interview with Bodhour Salhia, PhD, Assistant Professor of Translational Genomics, Keck School of Medicine of USC Q: How did you find out about the Komen Tissue Bank, and why did it interest you? Honestly, I leaned of the KTB from performing a google search while I was looking for plasma[...]

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The KTB will hold a tissue collection in the Phoenix area!

On Saturday, March 3, 2018, the KTB will partner with Banner MC Anderson Cancer Center to hold a healthy breast tissue collection event in Gilbert, AZ.  All eilgible women are welcome to donate, but women who belong to minority groups are especially encouraged to attend.  If you are inte[...]

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Meet our Researchers

Allow us to introduce two of our researchers to you! First, meet Mark Powell MD, MPH.  Dr. Powell is Senior Researcher for Zero Breast Cancer, a scientific collaboration in San Rafael, CA, and is also Visiting Scientist at Buck Institute for Research on Aging Q: How did you find out[...]

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Cryostats and Microtomes and LN2 Tanks… Oh My!

Holy Moly, science geeks unite! It is raining exciting equipment over here in our lab. Well, we’re excited about it anyway, so we’d love to get you up to date so that you too can feel the thrill.  Through the wonderful generosity of some of our most loyal grantors, the KTB has rec[...]

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