Quality‐assured research environments for translational cancer research

Abstract

In order to secure high‐quality cancer care for increasing numbers of cancer patients in the upcoming decades, the complete continuum of cancer research and cancer care needs a thorough overhaul, with more emphasis on prevention and early detection, and a greater focus on the development of innovative treatments that are also scrutinised for effectiveness and quality‐of‐life aspects. Therefore, under‐resourced research areas, such as primary prevention, early diagnosis/secondary prevention (Song et al ., 2018 ; Wild et al ., 2015 ) and outcomes research (Cavers et al ., 2017 ), should be given more emphasis, whereas basic, preclinical and clinical cancer research requires more innovation and effective collaboration to develop more effective treatments at an affordable cost. Innovative collaborative research in this translational trajectory requires the participation of well‐resourced and well‐organised institutions that are committed to high scientific and ethical standards. Offering focused funding to distinct segments of this research continuum concomitant with incentives to aspire to high‐quality standards is the most effective route to achieve these goals. Therefore, a rigorous quality assessment system for institutions operating in this research continuum is a high priority.

Towards a cancer mission in Horizon Europe: recommendations

“…Recently, the European Academy of Cancer Sciences (EACS) and several European organizations and cancer centres joined forces to define common goals for the implementation of a mission-oriented approach to cancer in Horizon Europe, initially proposed by Celis and Pavalski in 2017 [1][2][3]. The aim is 'to have an impact on society at large by uniting countries to substantially reduce the enormous cancer burden in the European Union (EU) and improve the health-related quality of life of patients by promoting cost-effective, evidence-based best practices in cancer prevention, treatment, and care'.…”

“…As highlighted previously, the main goal is to 'achieve a 10-year cancer-specific survival for ¾ of the adult patients diagnosed in year 2030 in Member States with a well-developed healthcare system. Because cancer mortality provides a timelier assessment of progress also capturing advances in both therapeutics and prevention, it will be important to document the expected declining trends of age-standardized mortality in each EU country' [1,2]. The objectives of the mission must be mindful of the needs of the European patients and citizens at large, by bringing maximum value for public investment, and to ensure that health technologies developed by funding through the mission are available to those who need them for a fair and affordable price.…”

Translational cancer research – a coherent cancer research continuum

“…Coherent translational research both for prevention and therapeutics can help to boost multidisciplinary cancer research further and stimulate innovation. An essential prerequisite is access to optimal research environments ; see also article by Berns, 2019).…”

Towards a mission‐oriented approach to cancer in Europe: an unmet need in cancer research policy

“…Cancer Core Europe is open to the addition of new centres; in the first instance, core centres will link with other CCCs and centres, with the aim of expanding contacts to all EU member states. In time, there must be at least one CCC in every EU member state to ensure that they link to national centres and reach out and interact closely with clinical centres concerning quality of care, innovation and research collaboration (see also articles by Eggermont et al, 2019, andby Berns, 2019).…”