Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (Fred Hutch) plans to merge with its longtime clinical affiliate, Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (SCCA) to form the new Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center (FHCC), effective April 1, 2022.
The IRO has received several questions asking about any anticipated impacts to approved IRB and IACUC studies if the proposed FHCC merger moves forward. Answers to the most frequently asked questions have been added to the OSR FHCC Transition Management FAQ in a new IRO section. Additionally, study teams can submit any merger-related questions for the IRO using a button on OSR’s transition management page. Below you can find the most current FAQs related to IRO activities:
No. Approved study materials do not need to be immediately updated. These materials can be revised at the time of the next Modification or Continuing Review after the merger closes. The IRO will release revised consent form templates and forms to reflect the new legal name.
No. The IRO has confirmed with both the Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP) and the Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare (OLAW) that the federalwide assurance (FWA) number and OLAW assurance number will remain the same.
Generally, no. The IRO is working with the Office of General Counsel to notify all organizations with existing reliance agreements of the legal name change.
No. An FVAF will not be required solely due to the funding novation process.
Revisions to the project ID(s), and any other administrative updates, can be reported with the study’s next Continuing Review Report on the Funding Source Supplement. A separate Modification is not required if there are no changes to the scope of work. For studies not required to submit Continuing Review Reports, please incorporate these administrative updates into a future Modification.
Revisions to the project ID(s), and any other administrative updates, can be updated at the time of the protocol’s next Amendment or Triennial review in Hutch IACUC. A separate Amendment is not necessary if there are no changes to the scope of work.
The IRO will notify HRPO and ACURO about the change in legal name on behalf of all Fred Hutch investigators with active DOD awards. No additional action should be required by the study teams.
To receive future issues of the IRO Newsletter, subscribe here. (Fred Hutch VPN or on-campus network connection is required to access the link.) Alternatively, send an email to iro-news-join@lists.fhcrc.org to subscribe. You will be sent an email requesting confirmation, to help prevent others from subscribing you without your permission. This is a private list, which means that the list of members is not visible to members or non-members.
Please note, we automatically subscribe principal investigators, PI proxies, and study contacts to the IRO Newsletter using the email addresses provided for research files that the IRO receives.
You can also unsubscribe from the IRO Newsletter, get a password reminder, or change your subscription options at any time here. Alternatively, email iro-news-leave@lists.fhcrc.org to unsubscribe. You will be sent an email requesting confirmation, to help prevent other from unsubscribing you without your permission.
