Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

New Member Resources

What is the CCGA?

The Compendium of Cancer Genome Aberrations (CCGA) is a collaborative effort to describe chromosome and other genomic abnormalities in cancer based on current WHO classification. The Wiki style interface allows for real-time editing and content sharing. This resource is sponsored and supported by the Cancer Genomics Consortium (CGC) and contributed to by colleagues with an interest in clinical cytogenetics, molecular genetics and genomics in cancer. For more information, check out this video! A Resource for our Clinical Genomics Community: the Compendium of Cancer Genome Aberrations (CCGA) - YouTube

Mission and Vision: About Us

New Volunteer Form: Volunteer Form

Video Tutorial (how to create content in the CCGA): Video Tutorial (in process of being updated)

Author Instructions (includes links to Word versions of CCGA page templates, how to curate a gene page, and the policy for inclusion of figures): Author Instructions

Current Page Authorship Opportunities: Volunteer Assignments and Opportunities (see “Authors” column and look for any that are not assigned)

Meet our Editorial Leadership: Editorial Leadership

Meet our CCGA Workgroup members: CCGA Workgroup Members

Join the CCGA Twitter family for the latest updates: @ccgawiki

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Joining CCGA

1.    Who can become a member of the CCGA?

We welcome anyone who would like to contribute to the CCGA effort! Various criteria that may be considered in granting CCGA membership are listed below. Even if you’re not sure if you fit into one of the categories, PLEASE still contact us with your interest. There are many ways to contribute and we’re excited to explore the possibilities with you. To get started, please complete our Volunteer Form to describe your experience and interests, and a member of our Editorial Team will contact you.

Categories:

i)       Nomination from current CCGA member

ii)      Being a current CGC member/referred by colleague who is a CGC member

iii)    Advanced degree and/or other pertinent educational background

iv)    Research/experience in disease/genes of interest

v)     Curation experience

2.     Can I become a member and contribute content even if I am not a content expert in a specific area?

Yes, contributing CCGA content is a good learning opportunity for everyone.  For trainees, we ask that you identify a mentor to help you with the content review prior to submission.  If a mentor is not locally available, we can also work directly with you in that capacity. An Associate Editor for your area will oversee the process and can help answer any questions.

3.    Can I get academic credit for this work?

Please see the Author Instructions for details on how to cite a CCGA page on your CV and in reports or other media. In addition, we will be acknowledging authors in CCGA presentations and we’re developing other ways of thanking our contributors such as through social media @ccgawiki.

4.     Who qualifies as a trainee member of the CCGA?

In general, this includes individuals enrolled in an undergraduate, a graduate program or post-doctoral training in medical genetics or a closely related field and accredited by the ACGME, ABMGG, CCMG (or RCPS), a residency program, or post-doctoral fellowship in a related field. Individuals may be technologists working in an applicable area. PLEASE contact us with your interest by completing our Volunteer Form to describe your experience and interests, and a member of our Editorial Team can work with you to determine if a mentor would be of help to you.

5.     What are the requirements for a trainee member?

Trainee members are expected to work with a mentor who will review the trainee’s work before it is finalized. If you do not have a mentor, please indicate this information on your volunteer form and the CCGA Editorial Team will match you with a mentor.

6.     What are the requirements for a mentor?

The mentor is typically an existing member of the CCGA and/or a qualified individual with expertise in the field who becomes a CCGA member through the mentoring process. See also the Description of CCGA Roles.

7.     What are the different volunteer opportunities available within the CCGA?

We are currently recruiting authors to write CCGA pages and Associate Editors for disease-specific areas. In the future we may have additional openings on our other initiatives, and so please stay tuned for further news. If you would like to be considered for opportunities in addition to authorship, please indicate this information on the Volunteer Form. See also the Description of CCGA Roles.

8.     What are the different types of CCGA pages?

There are three types of pages:

(1)   Disease category overview pages (for example see Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML), which are summaries of a group of diseases with links to all relevant content.

(2)   Disease-specific pages (for example see any of the links on the AML overview page), which is for individual disease entities and much more detailed.

(3)   Gene-specific pages (for example see ABL1).

9.    Which areas still have open pages that I could contribute?

This is continually changing, and so please indicate all your areas of interest on the Volunteer Form. The page content in process is denoted at Volunteer Assignments and Opportunities (see “Authors” column and look for any that are not assigned for pages in need of authors).

Authoring and Uploading Pages

10.  What information should I be including in my page?

Please refer to the Author Instructions, which includes links to Word versions of CCGA page templates and the policy for inclusion of figures. 

11.  How do I get an account in order to start uploading content?

Once you are assigned to a page and connected to an Associate Editor, an account will be created for you. You will receive an email with your username and password to log into the CCGA site.

12.  While my page is still in progress, should I be working on the CCGA site, or use the Word templates?

We recommend using the Microsoft Word template and saving a draft of your page before transferring the completed content to the site (suggest denoting references as PMIDs in the Word document; see below for inserting references in the CCGA site). The Word templates also have helpful additional instructions. The Associate Editor will add your name to the top of the page so that others know it’s in progress.

13.  How do I cite a reference?

References are automatically inserted by clicking on the page where you want the reference to be located and then using the “Cite” button and PMID number to find and select the reference (pre-formatted; sort themselves in reference list based on text position). Please see the Video Tutorial for a live demonstration: Video Tutorial.

14.  Can I include a figure from a published paper?

Yes, use of illustrative figures on the CCGA is encouraged! Our policy for inclusion of figures can be found on the Author Instructions page. Please note that copyrighted material can only be presented with permission.

15.  What should I do when I finish my page draft?

If using the Word template, please copy/paste the content of each section into the correlating section in the template on the CCGA site. References are inserted using the automated function based on PMID. Please contact your Associate Editor to let them know you have completed the page. In addition, please delete the heading at the top of your page that says: “This page is under construction. We need your help! Please consider joining in the project and submitting a review".

16.  What is the timeline for completing my page?

Please discuss with the Associate Editor for your area as they will work with you to find a timeline that makes sense for you.

17. Can I modify a page that has already been completed by other authors?

Yes! The CCGA is a wiki-based platform with the intention that contributors can modify any page at any time if something is not accurate or new evidence and references would be beneficial to share. This will allow up-to-date accurate content to be available to the community. Primary authorship will typically be listed as those individuals that initially completed the page content, and inquiries can be made by Email if a subsequent user modifies the content and feels the effort put forth is of high enough significance to warrant listing in the authorship section.

Technical Issues

18.  What should I do if I am experience technical issues when uploading content or using the site?

Please contact your Associate Editor who can either resolve your issue or follow up with CCGA@cancergenomics.org for technical assistance. If you have a major technical issue or something time sensitive, please include CCGA@cancergenomics.org on your initial email to your Associate Editor.