On April 9, the CRIS Cancer Foundation held the 2026 “CRIS Science Day” featuring the III CRIS International Symposium, focused on collaboration between medical and basic research, along with the “CRIS Research Programmes” award ceremony. The organization allocated €14.6 million to research in 2025.
The 2026 “CRIS Science Day” brought together some of the most prominent researchers and institutions in the international scientific landscape, consolidating this annual event as a key meeting point for knowledge sharing.
Lola Manterola, President of CRIS Cancer Foundation, highlighted and reaffirmed strong support for researchers as the only real solution to achieving effective cancer treatments. She also emphasized research as a driver of national progress, noting that “today it is impossible to sustain the scientific ecosystem without collaboration between public funding and private sources, where civil society plays a very important role.” She also recalled that the organization has contributed more than €80 million since its creation, €55.8 million in the last five years, and is committed to allocating an additional €150 million over the next five years. In 2025 alone, it invested €14.6 million, representing a 5.8% increase compared to the previous year.
CRIS Research Programmes
During the “CRIS Research Programmes” award ceremony, the organization recognized researchers from different generations, helping to promote scientific vocations among younger scientists and to foster excellence in research.
Dr. Mafalda Oliveira, Medical Oncologist at Vall d’Hebron University Hospital and Senior Researcher in the VHIO Breast Cancer Group, has been awarded the CRIS – Gustave Roussy Real Life Trials in Oncology Programme. This initiative, funded with €1,125,000 over three years, will enable the conduct, together with Dr. Joana Ribeiro from Gustave Roussy, of a real-world clinical trial aimed at optimizing existing treatments and improving their application in patients.
This is the OPT-PEMBRO trial, promoted by the French group UNICANCER in collaboration with SOLTI, whose objective is to evaluate the efficacy of omitting pembrolizumab after surgery in patients with early-stage triple-negative breast cancer who have achieved a complete response to prior treatment with chemotherapy combined with pembrolizumab administered before surgery.
Transparency and scientific rigor
The CRIS Cancer Foundation’s funding model is based on a rigorous project selection process grounded in criteria of scientific excellence, clinical impact, and feasibility.
Through its annual calls, CRIS programmes are evaluated by independent external scientific committees composed of nationally and internationally recognized experts, ensuring maximum transparency and rigor in the allocation of funds. This system makes it possible to identify and support projects with the greatest potential to transform cancer care and accelerate the translation of advances to patients.
