Heidelberg – From newly discovered mechanisms of cancer development to the use of AI in cancer diagnostics to innovative approaches to precision medicine: The 3rd German Cancer Research Congress on October 30th. until 1.11. in Heidelberg is a central forum for experts from all scientific disciplines of cancer research in Germany to exchange ideas across disciplinary boundaries. The main aim of the conference is to promote networking between important players and interest groups in the German cancer research landscape.
“The German Cancer Research Congress is intended as a stimulus for closer collaboration between the cancer research community in Germany as part of the National Decade against Cancer. We want to promote a holistic understanding of cancer biology and provide impetus so that results from cancer research can be implemented into new therapies, diagnoses and prevention strategies,” says Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Michael Baumannthe Chairwoman of the board and scientific director of the DKFZ.
The German Cancer Research Congress is a joint event of the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), the German Cancer Aid and the German Cancer Society (DKG) as well as the top oncological centers (Comprehensive Cancer Center) of the German Cancer Aid, the German Consortium for Translational Cancer Research (DKTK), and the National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) and the Department of Experimental Cancer Research (AEK) of the DKG.
The top-class congress program covers a wide range of topics, from unraveling the fundamental mechanisms of cancer development to the latest developments in precision medicine.
Where is precision medicine going and what role does bioinformatics play in it? How can the results of single cell analyzes be incorporated into patient care? Can the microbiome influence whether cancer metastasizes? How do cancer cells exploit metabolic pathways to fuel their growth? And how can AI support the development of personalized therapies? In a total of eight plenary sessions, questions with high relevance for cancer medicine in Germany will be discussed.
Numerous workshops are intended for intensive exchange in small groups: They offer the opportunity to enter into dialogue with renowned experts. New formats are also being tested: cancer researchers get to the heart of their findings in just three-minute flash talks. In three-minute “pitches on study ideas,” researchers present their ideas for clinical studies with the aim of finding cooperation partners.
“Over the past few years, we have worked together to build excellent structures in the German cancer research landscape. Our goal is to connect these well-established networks and thereby achieve synergy effects that ultimately benefit cancer patients. Networked, innovative cancer research is the basis for further advances in diagnostics and therapy,” says Gerd Nettekoven, the Chairwoman of the German Cancer Aid.
“We must work even harder across disciplines to ensure that research results can be passed on to oncological care. That the findings also reach the patient’s bedside in practice. “This works best when we bring experts together – across disciplines,” says Prof. Dr. Michael Ghadimi, President of the German Cancer Society.
The concept of the conference also includes involving patients in the discussion about the research questions. Both sides benefit from this: the researchers get to know a different perspective on their research field; Those affected have the opportunity to contribute their own suggestions to research processes.
Program for download
With more than 3,000 employees, the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) is the largest biomedical research institution in Germany. At the DKFZ, scientists research how cancer develops, record cancer risk factors and look for new strategies that prevent people from developing cancer. They are developing new methods with which tumors can be diagnosed more precisely and cancer patients can be treated more successfully. At the DKFZ’s Cancer Information Service (KID), those affected, interested parties and specialist groups can receive individual answers to all questions about cancer.
In order to transfer promising approaches from cancer research to the clinic and thus improve the chances of patients, the DKFZ operates translation centers together with excellent university hospitals and research institutions throughout Germany:
National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT, 6 locations) German Consortium for Translational Cancer Research (DKTK, 8 locations) Hopp Children’s Tumor Center (KiTZ) Heidelberg Helmholtz Institute for Translational Oncology (HI-TRON) Mainz – a Helmholtz Institute of the DKFZ DKFZ-Hector Cancer Institute at the University Medical Center Mannheim National Cancer Prevention Center (together with the German Cancer Aid)
The DKFZ is financed 90 percent by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research and 10 percent by the state of Baden-Württemberg and is a member of the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centers.