ABSTRACT, Biospecimen Collection and Banking Core (BC2) The broad scientific objective of the Indiana University Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center (IUSCCC) is to conduct high-quality, cutting-edge basic, clinical, and population research to improve understanding and advancement in the treatment of human malignancies. Tissue-based and biospecimen-based research is necessary to reach that objective. The IUSCCC Tissue Procurement and Distribution Core began providing tissue samples from patients with solid tumors in 1996. In mid-2021, after 18 months of discussion and planning, that former IUSCCC core, the Komen Normal Tissue Bank, the Oncology Research Information Exchange Network project team, and the biospecimen staff previously embedded in the Clinical Trials Office came together as the IUSCCC Biospecimen Collection and Banking Core (BC2). With the creation of BC2, this Shared Resource (SR) is able to make better use of shared assets and space. The consolidation also expanded staff support through increased hiring and cross-training. The new SR provides upwardly mobile job opportunities for core members who previously had few promotion options. Finally, the formation of BC2 promotes development of consistent approaches to and organization of data and tissue resources, further enabling the identification and support of IUSCCC members' needs. In forming BC2, core leadership was redistributed. A layer of middle management of the entire core, rather than singular managers of each of the four former groups, was established to enable management of core competencies such as biospecimen collection and storage, regulatory management, and communication and recruitment. BC2 has three Specific Aims: 1) provide well-annotated, diverse, high-quality biologic material to support basic and translational cancer research; 2) coordinate procurement, processing, storage, and management of biologic samples collected in conjunction with therapeutic and correlative cancer clinical trials, and collaborate with investigators to provide support (collection, processing, storage) for “protected collections” of samples to be used by specific IUSCCC researchers; and 3) develop and maintain tissue microarrays to support biomarker research. BC2 provides an extensive collection of well- annotated samples from patients with malignancy and normal controls to support studies exploring the biologic basis of cancer, move basic findings to the clinic, and probe the biology underlying clinical and population phenomena. BC2 collects fresh, frozen, and formalin fixed paraffin-embedded malignant solid tumors as well as histologically normal adjacent tissue; whole blood, plasma, serum and cellular components; bone marrow aspirate; and urine, pleural, paracentesis fluid, and normal tissue and blood from healthy donors. In the current grant period, BC2 has collected and processed 10,818 samples (5,240 tissue, 5,209 blood, 369 other biofluids; 40% COVID-related decrease from previous period)...