A doctor is checking the patient’s x-ray in this file photo provided by Seoul National University Hospital.
SEOUL, June 20 (Korea Bizwire) — The government and public institutions will make the extensive cancer patient database available to academic and industrial researchers.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare on Tuesday introduced the K-CURE online library, a comprehensive big data framework that encompasses 1.98 million cancer patients registered between 2012 and 2019.
This dataset covers the entire spectrum of the patients’ journey, from pre-diagnosis to death.
The data includes mortality information from Statistics Korea, cancer registration data from the Korea Central Cancer Registry, qualification and medical examination information from the National Health Insurance Service, and medical service usage application information from the Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service.
Upon submission of necessary documents, such as research proposals and security agreements, researchers can request the National Cancer Center to evaluate the research purpose and the appropriateness of anonymization.
The ministry emphasized that this portal will streamline the process of accessing and integrating public data from different organizations, ultimately reducing the time and cost required for researchers.
Ashley Song (ashley@koreabizwire.com)
