Animal Models: In relation to the Cancer InfoMatrix, this is defined as projects relating to the use of an animal sufficiently like humans in its anatomy, physiology or response to a pathogen to be used in medical research in order to obtain results that can be extrapolated to human medicine and/or a pathological or physiological condition that occurs in such an animal and is similar (as in its pathology or physiology) to a human condition.

Bandwidth: The capacity of a communications channel to transmit information.

BBSRC: Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council

Bioinformatics: The application of computer technology to the management of biologicalal information. Specifically, it is the science of developing computer databases and algorithms to facilitate and expediate biological research.

caBIG™: The Cancer Biomedical Informatics Grid. This is a project of the National Cancer Institute Center for Biomedical Informatics and Information Technology. It is an open-source, open-access, voluntary information network that will enable cancer researchers to share tools, standards, data, applications, and technologies according to agreed upon common standards and needs.

caCore: cancer Common Ontological Representation Environment (part of the US NCICBIIT caBIG™ project)

Caldicot Guardian: The person within an NHS Trust who is responsible for the systems that protect patient data, often the Medical Director.

Cancer Research Informatics: In the context of the NCRI Informatics Initiative, this is defined as any research, development, or application of computational tools and approaches for expanding the use of biological, medical, or health data, including those to acquire, store, organise, archive, analyse, or visualise such data.

CDISC: Clinical Data Interchange Standards Consortium

CHIME: Centre for Health Informatics and Multiprofessional Education, based at University College London.

ChIP: A method to identify specific proteins associated with a region of the genome, or in reverse, to identify regions of the genome associated with specific proteins. High-throughput versions include analysis of transcription factor distribution throughout the genome by combining ChIP with special microarrays that contain putative regulatory regions.

CLEF: Clinical eScience Framework

Clinical Trials and Longitudinal Studies: In relation to the Cancer InfoMatrix, a clinical trial is defined as a scientific study to determine the safety and effectiveness of a treatment or intervention. A longitudinal study is a study in which the same group of individuals is monitored at intervals over a period of time.

Controlled Vocabularies & Ontologies: In relation to the Cancer InfoMatrix, this is defined as projects which develop terminologies in the form of controlled vocabularies which can be used to annotate data elements or experiments.

COREC: Central Office for Research Ethics Committees

CRDB: Care Record Development Board

CRUK: Cancer Research UK

CTAAC: Clinical Trials Advisory and Awards Committee

CTC: Clinical Trials Committee

Cytogenetics: In relation to the Cancer InfoMatrix, this is defined as the study of chromosomes and chromosome abnormalities.

Data Elements: In relation to the Cancer InfoMatrix, this is defined as projects which are standardising descriptors of either data elements or experiments made up of data elements and metadata. Where multiple data elements/metadata terms make up an experiment, the project description indicates which elements should be included, as well as how they should be described.

Data Exchange Formats: In relation to the Cancer InfoMatrix, this is defined as projects which are developing standards for the purpose of data exchange between applications and organisations. Standards for data exchange include what should be exchanged and what format it should be in.

Data Mining: In relation to the Cancer InfoMatrix, this is defined as projects which develop tools or resources such as databases

DCC: Digital Curation Centre

DH: Department of Health

DICOM: Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine. A communication standard for handling digital images, mostly relevant to diagnostic imaging, e.g. X Rays

Discovery Based Research: Research in which large amounts of data are examined, without prior hypothesis, to discover markers or patterns that might discriminate among groups of individuals.

DNA: In relation to the Cancer InfoMatrix, this is defined as the sequencing, identification of genes, analysis of genetic variation and mutation analysis. Technologies include DNA sequencing, phylogenetics, haplotyping and SNP identification.

DSP: Data Sharing and Preservation

DTI: Department of Trade and Industry

EBI: European Bioinformatics Institute

ECDL: European Computer Driving Licence

EMBL: European Molecular Biology Laboratory

Epidemiology & Population Studies: In relation to the Cancer InfoMatrix, this is defined as epidemiological and population research studies that investigate the incidence, distribution, and control of disease in a population.

EPSRC: Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council

e-Science: e-Science refers to large scale science that is increasingly carried out through distributed global collaborations enabled by the Internet. Typically, a feature of such collaborative scientific enterprises is that they will require access to very large data collections, very large scale computing resources and high performance visualisation back to the individual user scientists.

EVS: Enterprise Vocabulary Service (part of the NCICBIIT caBIG™ project)

Gene expression: Transcriptional activity of a gene resulting in one or more RNA products and, usually, following translation, one or more protein products.

Gene therapy: The process of introducing new genes into the DNA of a person's cells to correct a genetic disease or flaw.

Genome: All the genetic material possessed by an organism.

Genomics: The study of the genes as a dynamic system, over time, to determine how they interact and influence biological pathways, networks and physiology.

GIMI: Generic Infrastructure for Medical Informatics

Health Informatics: The knowledge, skills and tools which enable information to be collected, managed, used and shared to support the delivery of healthcare and to promote health.

HEFCE: Higher Education and Funding Council for England

HEI: Higher Education Institute

HI: Health Informatics

High-Throughput Analysis: Research in which large numbers of variables are analysed simultaneously. RNA expression analysis using microarrays simultaneously examines expression levels of tens of thousands of genes. Proteomic analysis of serum using mass spectroscopy simultaneously examines thousands of peaks related to proteins and peptides.

HL7: Health Level 7

HLSC: High Level Steering Committee

IHI: Institute of Health Informatics

Implementation: In relation to the Cancer InfoMatrix, this is defined as projects which develop or maintain databases.

Informatics: In the context of the NCRI Informatics Initiative, this is defined as any research, development, or application of computational tools and approaches for expanding the use of biological, medical, or health data, including those to acquire, store, organise, archive, analyse, or visualise such data.

Interface: Refers to the hardware and software components of a connection between two elements of a computer or its peripheral devices.

IPR: Intellectual Property Rights

Joint Academic Network (JANET): A network linking UK universities, colleges and research establishments.

JISC: Joint Information Systems Committee

MAGE: Microarray and Gene Expression

MeSH: Medical Subject Heading

MGED: Microarray Gene Expression Data Society

MIAME: Minimal Information About a Microarray Experiment

Microarray: A solid surface on which thousands of spots representing genes or parts of the genome are arrayed. Microarrays are used to assay which genes are transcribed in a given sample and also to assay the genetic differences between two samples comparative genomihybridization.

MRC: Medical Research Council

Multivariable Models: Models that simultaneously consider how multiple variables - such as age, gender, co-morbidity, symptoms and gene expression - relate to an outcome such as diagnosis or prognosis.

N3: The National Network (broadband for the NHS)

NCI: The National Cancer Institute

NCI CBIIT: The National Cancer Institute Center for Bioinformatics and Information Technology

NCRI: National Cancer Research Institute

NCRN: National Cancer Research Network

NCRS: National Care Records Service.

NCTR: National Cancer Tissue Resource

NeSC: National eScience Centre

NGO: Non-Government Organisation

NGRL: National Genetics Reference Laboratory

NHS: National Health Service

NHS Care Record: A central database within the NCRS programme that will hold essential data about every patient – i.e. data that has long-term value for patient care. Detailed specification not yet publicly available.

NHS Number: Uniquely identifies every individual within the NHS in England and Wales.

NPfIT: National Programme for Information Technology

NPL: National Physical Laboratory

NTRAC: National Translational Cancer Research Network

OST: Office of Science and Technology

PACS: Picture Archiving and Communication System. Uses DICOM standard. Electronic store for digital images, mostly diagnostic.

PAS: Patient Administration System – deals with appointments, waiting lists, admissions, discharges, and transfers. Also provides information for Government returns regarding hospital activity.

Pathophysiology & Visualisation Techniques: In relation to the Cancer InfoMatrix, this is defined as projects relating to the physiology of abnormal states, specifically the functional changes that accompany a particular syndrome or disease and/or projects relating to the visualisation of internal structures to aid the diagnosis or treatment of cancer

PCT: Primary Care Trust

PPARC: Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council

Privacy Enhancing Technologies/Security: In relation to the Cancer InfoMatrix, this is defined as projects which are developing secure resources and applications for confidential data such as patient records.

Proteomics: In relation to the Cancer InfoMatrix, this is defined as the study (identification, characterization and quantification) of proteins involved in a particular pathway, organelle, cell, tissue, organ or organism that can be studied in concert to provide accurate and comprehensive data about that system. Technologies include protein interaction models, high-throughput protein analysis and modelling.

Protocol Standardisation: In relation to the Cancer InfoMatrix, this is defined as projects which are developing standard methods for commonly repeated procedures.

RCPath: Royal College of Pathologists

RCUK: Research Councils UK

RFCGR: Rosalind Franklin Centre for Genomic Research

SNOMED: Systematised Nomenclature of Medicine

SNP: Single Nucleotide Polymorphism. DNA sequence variations that occur when a single nucleotide (A, T, C, or G) in the genome sequence is altered. Each individual has many single nucleotide polymorphisms that together create a unique DNA pattern for that person. SNPs promise to significantly advance our ability to understand and treat human disease.

SOFG: Standards and Ontologies for Functional Genomics

SuperJANET: A project replacing the original JANET network in the UK with high-speed fibre optic cabling.

SWOT: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunites and Threats (in the context of risk analysis)

Therapeutics: In relation to the Cancer InfoMatrix, this is defined as projects relating to the treatment of cancer by remedial agents or methods

UKCCSG: UK Children's Cancer Study Group

UKCHIP: UK Council for Health Informatics Professions

UK CRC: United Kingdom Clinical Research Collaboration

UML: Universal Modelling Language. A platform independent language used to represent models in computer science.