Charles River Analytics Inc., developer of intelligent systems solutions, has received additional funding from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to develop a full-scope Cognitive Assessment and Monitoring Platform for Integrative Research (CAMPFIRE) system. CAMPFIRE is a research tool to assess and monitor subtle cognitive changes associated with cancer and cancer treatment. Through better monitoring, the CAMPFIRE system can help researchers and clinicians understand the relationship between cancer and cognitive deficits. We have partnered with Northwestern University and the University of Rochester Medical Center for the two-year contract, which is valued close to $1.5 million.
“Cancer survivors often report cognitive impairments during various stages of treatment, and especially following chemotherapy,” said Dr. Aaron Winder, Scientist at Charles River Analytics and Principal Investigator on the CAMPFIRE effort. “We’re building CAMPFIRE as an electronic tool to give researchers and clinicians greater access to data about individual patients. It will allow them to repeatedly and securely gather information about cognitive function, whether the patient is at home or in the clinic.”
We will work alongside the University of Rochester to incorporate CAMPFIRE into clinical workflows by connecting it to existing hospital software. Then, in a clinical usability evaluation, doctors will use CAMPFIRE to monitor patients for signs of cognitive impairment during various phases of chemotherapy treatment.
The CAMPFIRE effort furthers our work in Healthcare Support and Training, which addresses medical skills training, therapy and decision-support tools, as well as sensor and sensing technologies. We also developed the VITAMMINS medical simulation and tutoring system, which classifies an individual’s skill and continuously adapts training content to meet individual learning needs, as well as the STAT tablet-based training system, which presents a virtual patient in multiple trauma scenarios for efficient and effective learning, rehearsal, and assessment.
This project has been funded in whole or in part with Federal funds from the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, under Contract No. HHSN261201800047C.
