During a special award ceremony celebrated this week in Seville, VHIO´s Director, Josep Tabernero along with Joan Seoane, Director of Translational Research at VHIO, and Joan Carles, Principal Investigator of our Genitourinary, CNS Tumors, Sarcoma & Cancer of Unknown Primary Site Group, were awarded with Gaceta Médica´s Best-in-Class Prize for R&D in oncology in recognition of VHIO´s contribution to the Spanish National Health System.
As a leading comprehensive cancer center of excellence, VHIO is famed for advancing cancer discovery through the integration of translational science and clinical research within a purely multidisciplinary setting – a winning formula behind turning cancer discovery into more powerfully tailored treatments and better practice for the care of patients.
Representing the hub of VHIO´s early drug development program led by Principal Investigator Elena Garralda, our Research Unit for Molecular Therapies of Cancer (UITM) “la Caixa” spurs the advancement of novel agents based on the molecular profile of each tumor as well as the optimization of treatment regimens using combinations of new agents with existing ones. More specifically, the Unit´s broad portfolio of promising novel anti-cancer therapies continues to expand each year with special focus on first-in-human studies, novel-novel combinations, and best-in-class compounds.
Since its inauguration in 2010, the UITM, under the direction of Josep Tabernero, has rapidly established itself as one of the few comprehensive facilities in Europe to up the tempo in transforming latest discovery into benefits for patients. In 2016 it conducted a total of 115 phase I clinical trials and 14 basket studies with 453 patients enrolled. Flanking these efforts, VHIO´s pre-screening program performs molecular profiling of over 1200 patients a year as candidates for enrollment in these studies, and consequently enables our early clinical drug development task forces to more precisely match individual patients with a particular trial – representing essential progress in delivering on the true promise of personalized treatment and care in oncology.
“It is thanks to VHIO´s tight connectivity between translational science and clinical research that our expert and highly dedicated teams continue to accelerate the bench-bedside-bed cycle of knowledge and drive more effective anti-cancer therapies matched to the molecular make-up of an increasing number of individual patients. It is thanks to Gaceta Médica that we are here this evening to collect this year´s Best-in-Class Prize in recognition of our collective efforts in rendering cancer medicines more precise”, remarked Josep Tabernero.
The 12 de Octubre, Gregorio Marañon, Ramón y Cajal Hospitals as well as the Jiménez Díaz Foundation were the other deserving finalists in the category for R&D in Oncology. On behalf of VHIO we congratulate all the other award winners and gratefully thank Gaceta Médica for this distinction.
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