Cancer
Beyond baseline biospecimen collection – the NCI Connect for Cancer Prevention follow-up collections Stephanie Weinstein* Stephanie Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein Weinstein National Cancer Institute
Introduction
The Connect for Cancer Prevention Study is a prospective cohort focusing on cancer etiology, risk prediction, and early detection, with a goal to recruit 200,000 participants from 10 U.S. integrated healthcare systems. Baseline activities include online surveys and biospecimen collections, and new biospecimen activities are planned.
Methods
The current baseline protocol collects urine, mouthwash, and blood (serum, EDTA plasma, Streck Nucleic Acid tubes). Biospecimens are shipped in temperature-controlled coolers to a central NCI lab for processing and long-term storage. Mouthwash is also collected at home via mailed kits. Follow-up collections approximately every three years after study entry will mirror the baseline protocol, with modifications possible in the future. A cancer early-detection subcohort will include blood tubes optimized for liquid biopsy assays, collected annually in between follow-up collections. Fecal collections will be research-specific collections using mailed kits validated for human microbiome analyses. Participants will complete surveys of pre-analytical factors relevant to each collection.
Results
As of January 2026, 61,941 of 88,363 Connect participants (70%, 46%-81% across sites) donated baseline biospecimens, with collections still ongoing. Participation in biospecimen donations was similar by sex and race but increased with age. Over 46% of mouthwash samples were collected via home kits (return rate of 75%) which were received a median of 9 days from shipment (IQR 6-20 days). Over 90% of participants who donated biospecimens completed the biospecimen survey. The majority of participants donated specimens within one month of consent.
Conclusion
After successful implementation of baseline biospecimen collections at multiple healthcare sites, plans are in process to collect follow-up biospecimens and other new collections. Data and biospecimens from the Connect Study will be available to the research community in the future.