Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Liège

The CHU de Liège (coordinator of the ONCOCARE project), is a large academic hospital strongly experienced in the clinical care of cancer patients. It offers comprehensive diagnostic and therapeutic services to patients and their families. As referral center (over 2.500 new cancers/year), CHU analyses over 9.000 pathology specimens, performs more than 8.000 PET scanners, 31.000 chemotherapy preparations and 2.700 radiotherapy treatments every year. With almost 100 transplants/year, it is the second largest hematopoietic cell transplant center in Belgium and the most active internationally. It is the largest and most complete cancer center in the Wallonia Region. Furthermore, it is the only one, structurally connected with a University, mostly through the GIGA Research Institution. In addition, the CHU de Liège has recently created its integrated Cancer Institute (Ass) to further strengthen its oncological activities. A new building will be dedicated to ambulatory care with an ambitious strategic plan in which many essential items perfectly match the actions developed in OncoCare.

Uniklinik RWTH Aachen

The University Hospital of the RWTH Aachen offers the full spectrum of state-of-the-art diagnostic and treatment procedures as well as outstanding care for complex patient cases. The main tasks include innovative research at a high level and excellent medical treatment. Cancer is the most common diagnosis among inpatients at Aachen University Hospital wherefore the UKA-CIO (former UKA-ECCA) covers four in and outpatient sites that allow the diagnosis and treatment of multiple malignant diseases: the interdisciplinary tumor ambulance (ITA), an outpatient polyclinic, an inpatient station (IM42) and a HSCT specialized station (SZT1). Further it is closely connected with all other departments involved in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer patients. Since 2019, the UKA-CIO together with the centers of the University Hospitals of Bonn, Cologne, and Düsseldorf form the Center for Integrated Oncology (ABCD) consortium, a regional German network of four excellence centers certified as a « Centre of Excellence » by the German Cancer Society.  

Maastricht Universitair Medisch Centrum+

The Maastricht University Medical Center (MUMC+) is a pioneer in the field of European cross-border hospital cooperation. Its first exchange of patients and staff took place in the late eighties and has since been continuously intensified. Key elements of the medical cooperation strategy are “centre of excellence”, “complementarity” and “networks”.

MUMC+ is helping to meet the challenge of fighting cancer by forming the Maastricht Comprehensive Cancer Centre (Maastricht CCC), in which care and research are closely interwoven. 

The work of the Maastricht CCC includes the development of preventative strategies for cancer through lifestyle changes, medicines and surgery. A great deal of emphasis is placed on increasing the accuracy of targeted treatment for individual patients on the basis of clinical and biomolecular characteristics.

Jessa Ziekenhuis (withdrawn partner )

The oncology centre of the Jessa Hospital is the largest centre for oncological care in the Belgian Limburg Province. Our focus is on the holistic care for our patients with cancer. In that view, we have the radiotherapy, hematology and medical oncology divisions incorporated in our department. The Limburg Oncology Center is strongly involved in delivering evidence-based cancer care to over 2,100 new cancer patients every year. The center also includes a clinical trial unit with a large experience in phase II, III and IV clinical trials. In addition, the Jessa hospital has obtained for several years the NIAZ accreditation, the hematology division received the JACIE accreditation for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, and the medical oncology division the ESMO accreditation. Hence the Jessa hospital is strongly involved in quality management in general and in cancer care in particular.

 Bridge2Health

One of B2H’s missions is to ensure life science projects management for both the CHU and the University of Liège. B2H’s strength lies within the skills and qualification of its staff who, besides their well‐established scientific knowledge, has managed numerous research programs and networks within  both the public and private sectors.

B2H is indeed specialized in public-private partnerships coordination, ensuring communication between the Parties and day-to-day administration of the project (collection, review, submission of project progress information); prepare and lead meetings (agenda, minutes); ensure knowledge sharing by transmitting documents, reports and other relevant information. Thus, B2H has received the official empowerment from the CHU and the ULiège to be responsible for the management of the OncoCare consortium.

Université de Liège

The University of Liège is the only complete university in the Wallonia-Brussels Federation and, in particular, the only one to offer a complete cursus in medicine. Its fundamental missions are research and teach, the Faculty of Medicine offering a whole training program for future doctors, general practitioners, specialists, pharmacists and other healthcare professionals.

The principal research institute linked to the Faculty of Medicine is the GIGA Institute, with units particularly active in cancer and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation research (GIGA-Cancer/GIGA-I3). Research on cancer is one of the 4 main pillars in the University, teams being involved in multiple collaborative projects in translational and fundamental research.

Faculty of Medicine of the RWTH Aachen – research

The RWTH Aachen University is one of the most renowned universities in Germany. It exploits strong research networks and the intellectual curiosity of its staff to address bold scientific questions, transfer forefront knowledge and drive innovative discoveries that impact global challenges. It was declared an « University of Excellence » in 2007 with a renewal of this title in 2019. Main tasks of the Faculty of Medicine RWTH Aachen is medical teaching and research based on a strong cooperation with the RWTH University Hospital Aachen. Since 2003, the RWTH Aachen University pursues an innovative medical study program: an integrated concept interlinks preclinic and clinic from the first semester onward. The field of oncology and hematology is essential for the training of prospective (specialist) physicians who benefit from the many internal and external partners involved in the UKA-CIO and this interdisciplinary training environment. The curricula offer a diverse range of national and international research projects and combine various disciplines, such as medicine and technology.

Maastricht University

Maastricht University (MU) is one of the largest academic institutions in the Netherlands. Within MU, the School of Nutrition and Translational Research in Metabolism (NUTRIM) aims to accelerate the translation of science to patient and population. Biomedical research is directly linked to clinical trials and research focusing on behavioral interventions and health promotion.

The School of Oncology and Developmental Biology (GROW) focuses on (epi)genetic and cellular mechanisms, as well as (micro)environmental factors underlying cancer development, with emphasis on translational research. The objective is to develop innovative approaches for individualizing prevention, patient diagnostic and treatment.

Furthermore, as part of the Maastricht Comprehensive Cancer Center (MCCC), MU focuses on research with the ultimate aim to improve outcome for cancer patients along the continuum of prevention, diagnosis, cure and care.