EOS4Cancer gains momentum with kick-off and website launch

More than ever, healthcare is about data, especially how to find meaningful correlations in and between heterogenous datasets. The challenge is to ensure these large data volumes, powered by AI, can be used to reduce incidence, cost and treatment inequalities, improving for example cancer prevention, diagnosis and treatment.

Horizon Europe funded project EOSC4Cancer aims to provide the infrastructure for the exploitation of these large cancer datasets for the overarching EU Cancer Mission. EOSC4Cancer brings together comprehensive cancer centres, research infrastructures, leading research groups, and major computational infrastructure across Europe to make the exploitation of the data possible.

‘Five different use cases will be important drivers in this project’, Lygature’s Program Manager Sophie Huiskes-Berends explains. ‘These use cases will cover a patient’s data journey and act as inspiration for the Work Packages focusing on the technical challenges.’ Together with Lyagture’s Data Infrastructure portfolio leader Jan-Willem Boiten, Huiskes-Berends will be closely involved in Work Package 4 of EOSC4Cancer, providing program management support for the use cases.

Colorectal cancer is chosen as a common theme across the use cases, as it represents a tumour type with abundant data and ample cross-border collaborations. The use cases reflect all stages of data collection during a colorectal cancer patient’s trajectory from prevention, diagnosis, treatment, to medical management. The use cases will demonstrate the value of data collection, harmonization and interoperability during all stages.

EOSC4Cancer is led by the Barcelona Supercomputing Center and ELIXIR Hub, and brings together 29 participants from 13 countries. The project started with a kick-off on 28 en 29 September in Barcelona and will run for 30 months. This week, the EOSC4Cancer website was launched.