The NVIDIA Foundation: Compute the Cure

(originally published 8th February 2016 on DVS Gaming)

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For more than 20 years NVIDIA has been a leader in visual computing, pioneering “the world’s first GPU”.  But what you may not know is that the NVIDIA Foundation was created to actively invest employees, partners, technology and finances into some of the world’s most pressing health and education issues

Compute the Cure is a philanthropic program launched in 2010 that aims to “advance the fight against cancer through grants and employee engagement initiatives“.  Since 2011, Compute the Cure has donated more than $2 million to cancer research.

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Cancer develops when there are DNA mutations that lead to the uncontrolled division of cells in the body. As there is a decrease in cost of DNA sequencing and an increase in data available,  NVIDIA aims to support projects that invest in computation to advance cancer research, diagnostics and/or treatment. Compute the Cure grant program is split into two different awards systems: Research Grants and Cancer Care Grants. The Compute the Cure Cancer Care Grant awards four $50,000 grants per year to support not-for-profit, cancer focused organisations working in the areas of prevention, screening, diagnosis, treatment, survivorship and end-of-life care.

The first ever research grant was awarded to Virginia Tech and the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute. They developed an open source software framework for cancer researchers to identify DNA mutations that incorporated GPU-accelerated re-alignment algorithms. This platform is now freely available to the research community.

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Depiction of an RNA molecule being transcribed from DNA, juxtaposed with an artificial neural network interpreting the genomic sequence. The computations performed by the neural network run inside NVIDIA GPUs. (http://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/2015/11/25/compute-the-cure-3/)

NVIDIA GPUs are being used for a variety of applications in cancer research. These include:

  • Enabling 3D mammograms for breast cancer detection using digital tomosynthesis to see through layers of dense tissue.
  • Online Adaptive Radiotherapy (ART) to develop more precise treatment plans for radiotherapy.
  • Biological simulations of mechanisms found in cancer cells, such as enzyme production.
  • Biophotonics, the interaction between biology and light, for improved early detection of cancer.
  • Quicker and more efficient genomic mapping.

Not only does Compute the Cure grant research money annually, but they also directly involve their employees into actively fundraising funds for cancer research. Raising hundreds of thousands of dollars towards breast and prostate cancer and mental health issues, NVIDIA encourages all employees to participate in and donate to their fundraising activities as well as matching all funds raised by their employees.  Additionally, The NVIDIA Foundations provides a Cancer Support Network for employees in need of support whether they themselves have been diagnosed with cancer or are supporting a sick loved one.

For more information on the way NVIDIA GPUs are being used for cancer research, have a look at the video below and let us know what you think.

All images © NVIDIA Corporation 2016

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