Lung Tissue Research Consortium - Radiology Center

The purpose of this amendment is to answer questions received in response to the solicitation, and to extend the proposal receipt date to 3:00 pm local time on Tuesday, February 17, 2015.

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) is seeking a Radiology Center for a four year program, the NHLBI Lung Tissue Research Consortium (LTRC). The purpose of this announcement is to provide a Presolicitation Notice for the release of Solicitation NHLBI-HR-16-06. THIS IS A SYNOPSIS. THIS IS NOT A SOLICITATION.

The NHLBI is seeking an organization with the ability to serve as the Radiology Center (RC) during the first thirty-seven (37) months of the four-year renewal of the NHLBI Lung Tissue Research Consortium (LTRC). The LTRC is a network of centers cooperating to harvest and process lung tissue specimens for use in scientific studies of the etiology and pathogenesis of lung diseases, especially chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. The LTRC prepares collections of specimens, linked to clinical data describing the donor subjects, for widespread distribution to investigators for use in their research. The RC will analyze chest x-ray CT images of donor subjects and operate a repository of image data. The RC will function in cooperation with a Data Coordinating Center which provides overall management, oversight, and administrative support for the LTRC; a Tissue Repository that processes, stores, and distributes biospecimens; and 3-4 Clinical Centers that recruit and characterize human subjects and harvest surgical waste lung tissues.

It is expected that the RC will be an institution with expertise in clinical radiology that routinely performs readings of x-ray CT images for diagnosis of interstitial lung diseases and chronic obstructive lung disease. The RC will have primary responsibility for quality control and assurance of x-ray CT images in the LTRC and for extracting qualitative and quantitative radiographic measures of lung abnormality for use in phenotyping LTRC donor subjects.

The RC is expected to provide the necessary technical expertise and facilities to effectively perform the tasks and meet the requirements identified below:

1. Obtain and maintain Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval for RC activities described in the LTRC Protocol Manual, and any amendments thereto.
2. Provide one member of the Steering Committee (SC) with expertise in lung disease imaging who will participate fully in the activities of the SC.
3. Conduct a training course for LTRC Clinical Center (CC) personnel involved in image acquisition, processing, and transfer.
4. Develop and implement a process whereby the LTRC CCs transfer CT images to the RC. Perform quality control/quality assurance tests and report results to the LTRC Data Coordinating Center (DCC).
5. Develop and maintain an archive of lung images with procedures for backup that will minimize possibilities of data loss, incorporating images collected previously by the LTRC.
6. Perform analyses of lung images to obtain diagnostic and quantitative research measures of disease. Transmit results to the LTRC DCC.
7. Perform diagnostic radiological readings of lung images by a board-certified radiologist. Notify the contributing LTRC CC of any clinically significant abnormalities for relay to the subject's primary care physician.
8. Prepare image collections in electronic form for distribution to investigators for approved studies as authorized by the NHLBI through the LTRC DCC.
9. Identify any problems with existing LTRC procedures and any difficulties that may interfere with LTRC objectives. Devise strategies to improve procedures and overcome difficulties.
10. Transfer all LTRC x-ray CT lung images to a repository identified by the NHLBI at the end of the contract period, together with the coded information linking the images to other data of the LTRC.
11. Develop detailed plans, in collaboration with other LTRC investigators, for the creation of an omics data set based on LTRC biospecimens and phenotypic data.

Under this solicitation, the Government anticipates award of one (1) Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract with cost reimbursement task orders for a period of approximately thirty-seven (37) months with an estimated award date of December 16, 2015.

This is not a Request for Proposal (RFP) and the Government is not committed to award a contract pursuant to this announcement. The RFP will be available on the FedBizOpps Web page at www.fbo.gov on or about December 18, 2014.