From the beginning, we knew that the mission of the nonprofit was going to be bigger than what our family could achieve on our own. We wanted to name it something that could honor David, the heart behind our initiative, in some way, but it needed to be something that other people could identify with also. David loved dragons from the time he was tiny, so that was a symbol that both honored him and gave the imagery of a beast we could tame. We hoped that it would resonate with other people. We also thought that it could be defined in different ways as the data led us in different directions. We were very intrigued by the thought that by collecting large-scale data, we might be able to help more than just brain cancer patients, and indeed, that has been what has happened.

The CAVATICA platform is a free, open-access research-sharing tool that enables doctors and scientists to easily share, search, and analyze large collections of patient genomic data. The Children’s Brain Tumor Network (CBTN) is a network of hospitals and other research institutions that have committed to sharing their data via CAVATICA. We’re looking to support the development and expansion of CAVATICA in our partnership with the CBTN. One of the most exciting things about this data sharing effort is that though there is a membership component to those who are inputting the data, the collected data is then available to researchers worldwide, with no consortium membership necessary. That ensures that the data is the highest possible quality, but also makes sure it has the widest possible usage.

Medical research and treatment discovery can take years due to the current processes that medical professionals and researchers follow. By providing a free, open-access research tool that doctors and scientists can utilize simultaneously, time is cut dramatically in these processes. Having data in interactive platforms like CAVATICA and pedsCBioPortal means that doctors have access to more information about pediatric brain cancer. This allows medical researchers to modify their experiments and trials in real-time, accelerating the discovery of a cure for brain cancer, and potentially many other cancer types.

There are multiple ways you can support the Dragon Master Initiative as an individual and as a company! Find out how you can get involved here and learn more about monetary contributions here. We also offer ways to partner with the Dragon Master Initiative on a corporate level through events and donations. Get more information, here.