National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Contracts and Procurement Management Branch, OM, 79 T.W. Alexander Drive, 4401 Building, P.O. Box 12874, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709

A -- A SOLE SOURCE PROCUREMENT ENTITLED "RISK FACTORS FOR UTERINE FIBROIDS: A CASE CONTROL STUDY DUE 070797 POC Contact Vondia C. Malone, Contract Specialist, (919) 541-0428 or FAX (919) 541-2712 The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) intends to negotiate with the George Washington University Medical Center (GWUMC) on a sole source basis to complete a project that started as a subcontract task order with GWUMC under a prime contract with CODA, Inc. (CODA). CODA is the NIEHS Epidemiology Branch support services contractor. The subcontracted task order was a pilot study to determine the feasibility of recruiting appropriate subjects for a study of uterine fibroids. Completion of the project will include the following objectives: (1) to estimate and compare the cumulative prevalence of leiomyomas (i.e., the proportion who have had fibroids) in black and white women aged 35 -- 49 years who are members of a large urban health plan; (2) to identify risk factors for leiomyomas; and (3) to compare markers of genetic transformation, hormonal regulation, growth factor promotion, and patterns of cell proliferation apoptosis in leiomyoma tissue and normal myometrium from the same uterus. Authority: 41 USC 253(c)(1), as set forth in FAR 6.302-1. Inherent duplication of cost to the Government and unacceptable delays in completing the uterine fibroid study make competition unfeasible for completion of the study. See Numbered Notes 22 and 26. (0135)

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