SOLICITATION NOTICE
B -- Survival Query System for Clinicians for Prostate Cancer
- Notice Date
- 8/11/2006
- Notice Type
- Solicitation Notice
- NAICS
- 541990
— All Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
- Contracting Office
- Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, Office of Acquisitions, 6120 Executive Blvd. EPS Suite 600, Rockville, MD, 20852
- ZIP Code
- 20852
- Solicitation Number
- Reference-Number-NCI-60145-NV
- Response Due
- 8/28/2006
- Archive Date
- 9/12/2006
- Description
- In accordance with simplified acquisition procedures The National Cancer Institute (NCI), Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences (DCCPS), Surveillance Research Program (SRP), Statistical Research and Applications Branch (SRAB) proposes to acquire, on a sole source basis, the services of Benjamin Hankey, Sc.D., St. Augustine, Florida. The SEER database includes data on age, race, and sex of a cancer patient along with cancer site and type, stage, modality of first course of treatment, and patient follow-up all at the individual patient level. This database is a unique resource for information on cancer patient prognosis. However, there is a need to develop tools that can facilitate access to statistics on patient survival that can be obtained from the SEER database in order to better inform patients and clinicians on the subject of prognosis without the need for them to do data analysis. To provide further usefulness of SEER survival data for information on patient prognosis, over the last two years staff in the SRP have developed the Survival Query System (SQS) for Clinicians. Unlike the usual net survival estimates, which are produced for policy level analysis of cancer progress, the SQS provides crude estimates of survival in the presence of other causes. The current system provides up-to-date estimates of prognosis by using the period method. The SQS provides Information on the numbers out of 100, of survivors, deaths from cancer, and deaths from other causes for sequential follow-up periods through 10 years following diagnosis. The cancer portion of survival and other causes are computed separately and joined using an assumption of conditional independence. If the selected strata is considered too sparse (based on both the number in the survival cohort at time zero and the SE of the survival estimate at 10 years), then strata are pooled in reverse order of prognostic importance of the variable. The system exploits the large sample size of the SEER database, by doing stratified analyses, rather than modeling across strata. The SQS, Version 1.0, has been previewed and while the feedback has been generally favorable, issues have arisen as the SQS does not provide the incremental benefits of adjuvant therapy or exclusion criteria (e.g. for colorectal cancer patients, should it exclude those patients who do not have surgery, which is usually associated with significant comorbidities) and/or what descriptive information to provide for patients in a selected strata (e.g. treatment). In addition further research is required on how the user interface should look, and how the system would be used by clinicians and patients. The workscope of this contract will require the development of crude survival rates for prostate cancer cases using SEER data for the time period of diagnosis 1988-2003. Dr. Hankey shall: 1) Establish a Technical Advisory Group (TAG); 2) Solicit advice from the TAG; 3) Perform various test analyses using SEER data - to determine (a) review coding details of SEER data relevant to the development of the SQS estimates (e.g. years that both pathologic and clinical staging are available on the patients who have both); (b) the strata which will be available in the SQS; (c) sample sizes of different strata; (d) the impact of comorbidty on the cancer side of the equation; and (e) the prognostic significance of various covariates to determine which ones are needed as well as the order for collapsing strata when the sample size is small. Dr. Hankey is the only known source to the NCI researchers with this knowledge and expertise who can meet their needs. Dr. Hankey recently retired as head of the Cancer Statistics Branch after 38 years at NCI. In this position he was responsible for managing the SEER registry contracts, but was also responsible for the analysis and interpretation of trends in SEER data, as well as the development of new statistical methodologies. In addition, he was involved in all phases of the development of Version 1.0 of the SQS. Thus Dr. Hankey?s expertise and knowledge of SEER data, coupled with his knowledge of statistical and practical issues related to implementation of new cancer sites into the SQS, gives him unique experience and expertise not readily available within the research community. This is not a solicitation for competitive quotations. However, if any interested party believes it can meet the entire above requirement, they may submit a statement of capabilities. All information furnished shall be in writing and must contain sufficient detail to allow the NCI researcher to determine if it can meet the requirements of this synopsis. An original and one copy of the capability statements must be received in the Contracting Office by 1PM EST (local Washington, D.C. time) on August 28, 2006. Faxed and emailed capability statements are NOT authorized. All questions must be in writing and may be emailed to Debbie Moore at dm170b@nih.gov or faxed (301) 402-4513. It is the vendor?s responsibility to call (301) 402-4509 and verify that questions were received. A determination by the Government not to compete this proposed contract based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. In order to receive an award from the NCI contractors must be registered in the Online Representations and Certifications Applications (ORCA) in order to receive an award. Please refer to http://orca.bpn.gov in order to register. In addition, contractors must be registered in the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) www.ccr.gov. No collect calls will be accepted. NAICS: 541990; Size Standard is $6.5 million.
- Record
- SN01112569-W 20060813/060811220549 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
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