Summer School in Translational Cancer Research
5-10 October 2025 – Algarve, Portugal
About the Summer School
The Summer School in Translational Cancer Research was initiated in 2011 by the EurocanPlatform project, funded under the 7th Framework Programme of the European Union, and performed four editions hosted by the EurocanPlatform. Since 2016, the Summer School has been hosted annually by Cancer Core Europe.
Over the course of one week, PhD students, postdoctoral fellows and clinician-scientists from around the world are offered cutting-edge knowledge on topics covering the entire cancer research continuum, with a particular focus on precision cancer medicine. Participants and speakers are selected to represent a multidisciplinary group. The program and course format facilitate networking and intensive interactions in a relaxed environment – a concept which has proven to be successful over the years. Already, Summer School has benefited over 450 preclinical and translational scientists, as well as clinician scientists from all over the world.
About the Summer School
The Summer School in Translational Cancer Research was initiated in 2011 by the EurocanPlatform project, funded under the 7th Framework Programme of the European Union, and performed four editions hosted by the EurocanPlatform. Since 2016, the Summer School has been hosted annually by Cancer Core Europe.
Over the course of one week, PhD students, postdoctoral fellows and clinician-scientists from around the world are offered cutting-edge knowledge on topics covering the entire cancer research continuum, with a particular focus on precision cancer medicine. Participants and speakers are selected to represent a multidisciplinary group. The program and course format facilitate networking and intensive interactions in a relaxed environment – a concept which has proven to be successful over the years. Already, Summer School has benefited over 450 preclinical and translational scientists, as well as clinician scientists from all over the world.
Venue & Location
A key factor in the program’s success is the serene environment, which offers the perfect backdrop for an immersive learning experience. The combination of an inspiring location and a well-structured five-day program promotes networking, in-depth interaction, and academic growth.
A partner hotel in the Algarve in Portugal has been hosting the editions of the Summer School. Having all attendees together in the same place for one week provided a unique opportunity to closely exchange ideas with experts, connect with new peers in the field, and foster multidisciplinary, international collaborations.
2024 Highlights
The 2024 Summer School, held from October 6th to 11th, brought together 70 participants from 30 different nationalities, creating a truly global platform for learning and collaboration. Attendees had the opportunity to engage with a distinguished faculty, featuring renowned experts from Cancer Core Europe member centers and partner institutions.
The program offered a comprehensive overview of oncology topics through lectures, workshops, and interactive sessions. These sessions not only enriched participants’ knowledge but also sparked insightful discussions about the latest breakthroughs and challenges in cancer research.
Venue & Location
A key factor in the program’s success is the serene environment, which offers the perfect backdrop for an immersive learning experience. The combination of an inspiring location and a well-structured five-day program promotes networking, in-depth interaction, and academic growth.
A partner hotel in the Algarve in Portugal has been hosting the editions of the Summer School. Having all attendees together in the same place for one week provided a unique opportunity to closely exchange ideas with experts, connect with new peers in the field, and foster multidisciplinary, international collaborations.
2024 Highlights
The 2024 Summer School, held from October 6th to 11th, brought together 70 participants from 30 different nationalities, creating a truly global platform for learning and collaboration. Attendees had the opportunity to engage with a distinguished faculty, featuring renowned experts from Cancer Core Europe member centers and partner institutions.
The program offered a comprehensive overview of oncology topics through lectures, workshops, and interactive sessions. These sessions not only enriched participants’ knowledge but also sparked insightful discussions about the latest breakthroughs and challenges in cancer research.
Previous Editions
2024
2023
2022
2021
2019
Apply to the 2025 Summer School
Thank you for your interest in our programme. Applications for the 2025 Summer School are now closed.
FAQ
Who can apply?
PhD/MD students, postdocs and researching clinicians with an interest in translational cancer research.
What do we offer?
The programme has a cost contribution of 1,100 Euros, and includes:
- A five-day scientific programme led by experts in the field.
- Accommodation in PortoBay Blue Ocean shared double rooms for five nights (same gender occupancy).
Note: Single rooms are available upon request, subject to availability, and incur an additional charge. Personal expenses (e.g., bar tabs, mini bar, telephone, etc.) are not included.
- Full meals, including breakfast, lunch, dinner, and coffee breaks.
- Shuttle service between Faro airport or Albufeira train station and the venue (available upon request).
- Abstract book.
- Certificate of attendance.
How to apply
- Complete the online application form, including the submission of a scientific abstract.
- All submitted applications will be reviewed and evaluated by the Scientific Committee.
- Once evaluations are completed, applicants will be notified of their status by the Organising Team.
Scholarship opportunities
A limited number of scholarships covering the participation fee are available.
Important: Scholarships are highly competitive. We strongly recommend exploring other internal or external funding options in addition to applying.
Visa support
If you require a visa to enter Portugal, the Organising Team will assist by providing a visa letter. To ensure timely processing, please provide all required information as soon as possible.
2025 Program
This edition covers a wide range of topics in translational and clinical cancer research, including precision medicine, clinical trials, AI, immunology, computational oncology, early detection, and more.
*Preliminary program, still subject to change.
Confirmed Speakers
The list of confirmed speakers is continuously updated
Elias Arnér
Karolinska Institutet
Sweden
Elsa Bernard
Gustave Roussy
France
Giulia Bertolini
Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori di Milano (INT)
Italy
Benjamin Besse
Gustave Roussy
France
Javier Carmona
Vall d'Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO)
Spain
Priya Chudasama
NCT Heidelberg - DKFZ
Germany
Isidro Cortes-Ciriano
EMBL-EBI
United Kingdom
Suzette Delaloge
Gustave Roussy
France
Stefan Fröhling
NCT Heidelberg - DKFZ
Germany
Jakob Nikolas Kather
Technical University (TU) Dresden
Germany
Bruno Köhler
NCT Heidelberg - DKFZ
Germany
Cindy Körner
NCT Heidelberg - DKFZ
Germany
Mònica Sánchez Guixé
Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB)
Spain
Janne Lehtiö
Karolinska Institutet
Sweden
Andreas Lundqvist
Karolinska Institutet
Sweden
Silvia Martin-Lluesma
Vall d’Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO)
Spain
Christophe Massard
Gustave Roussy
France
Mate Maus
Vall d’Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO)
Spain
Daniel Mertens
Schiller & Mertens GbR
Germany
Simon Pacey
CRUK Cambridge Centre
United Kingdom
Andri Papakonstantinou
Karolinska Institutet
Sweden
Cecile Ronckers
DKFZ, KiTZ, NCPC
Germany
Dhifaf Sarhan
Karolinska Institutet
Sweden
Lucia Sfondrini
Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori di Milano (INT)
Italy
Laura Soucek
Vall d’Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO)
Spain
Josep Tabernero
Vall d'Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO)
Spain
Nick Tobin
Karolinska Institutet
Sweden
Wilbert Zwart
Netherlands Cancer Institute (NKI)
The Netherlands
Meet the Scientific Committee
Nick Tobin
Karolinska Institutet
Sweden
Priya Chudasama
National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg – DKFZ
Germany
Stefan Fröhling
National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg – DKFZ
Germany
Silvia Martin-Lluesma
Vall d’Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO)
Spain
Mate Maus
Vall d’Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHO)
Spain
Thomas Mercher
Gustave Roussy
France
Delia Mezzanzanica
Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori di Milano (INT)
Italy
Simon Pacey
CRUK Cambridge Centre
United Kingdom
Dhifaf Sarhan
Karolinska Institutet
Sweden
Michiel van der Heijden
The Netherlands Cancer Institute (NKI)
The Netherlands
Support Summer School 2025
Become a part of something great by joining a vibrant network of people and centres that are advancing cancer research.
Join us on a transforming journey by supporting our upcoming Summer School as a valued sponsor and collaborating with us to offer this program with more junior scientists around the world.
We’ve served as an innovative and knowledge-rich hub for more than 450 junior translational scientists and clinician scientists in face-to-face Summer Schools and more than 1.000 in virtual events over the past five years. We are looking for like-minded organisations to support us and help us continue our mission.
Why support us?
Accelerate Progress
You are directly promoting cancer research with your support.
Global Impact
Get in touch with a diverse group of first-class, global specialists willing to share ideas and advance cancer research. Your brand will be shown, enhancing your visibility in the field and your commitment to cutting-edge research.
Enrichement of Education
With your help, exceptional postdocs, clinicians, researchers and PhD students will be able to enroll in the most significant one-week program on translational cancer research in Europe.
Tailored Packages
We provide a variety of sponsorship packages that can be customised to meet the requirements of your organisation. In addition, there may be the possibility for some sponsors to attend and deliver a short talk.
Sponsors
Gold
Menarini Stemline is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Menarini Group, focused on the development and commercialization of innovative oncology therapies. The company markets three key treatments: ELZONRIS® (tagraxofusp-erzs) for blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm (BPDCN), ORSERDU® (elacestrant), an oral endocrine therapy for ER-positive, HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer with ESR1 mutations, and NEXPOVIO® (selinexor), approved in Europe for relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma. Stemline is also advancing a robust clinical pipeline of small molecules and biologics targeting both solid tumors and hematologic malignancies. The company aligns with Menarini’s precision medicine strategy, emphasizing targeted therapies and advanced diagnostic technologies.
Jazz Pharmaceuticals has sponsored this meeting via a financial contribution only. Jazz Pharmaceuticals has had no involvement in the content or in any other aspect of this meeting.
Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc is a global biopharmaceutical company whose purpose is to innovate to transform the lives of patients and their families. We are committed to seeking solutions for patients with complex diseases so they can live their lives more fully. With a growing oncology pipeline, Jazz is redefining what is possible in the treatment of cancer by focusing on innovative areas of research like targeted therapy and immuno-oncology
M-INT-JPC-2500009 June 2025
Bronze
At Ultima Genomics, our mission is to continuously drive the scale of genomic information to enable unprecedented advances in biology and improvements in human health. To achieve this, we built a revolutionary new sequencing architecture that scales far beyond conventional technologies, enabling scientists to overcome the tradeoffs they face between the breadth, depth, and frequency of sequencing.
Supporters
The German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), one of the German Health Research Centers (DZG), was established in 2012 to support the goal of advancing promising new cancer research results into clinical development and practice as soon as feasible. Over 20 academic research institutes and university hospitals collaborate in translation centers at eight partner sites with the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), the consortium’s core center.
IHU PRISM is a national center for precision medicine in oncology, based at Gustave Roussy (Villejuif, France). It aims to improve cancer treatment by modeling each patient’s disease through molecular profiling, computational oncology, AI-driven analysis, and advanced biotechnologies. Its translational research and clinical programs validate innovative diagnostics and therpies, redefining cancer classification and treatment to enhance survival and reduce tratment toxicity. The IHU PRISM is a consortium formed by Gustave Roussy, Université Paris-Saclay, CentraleSupélec, Unicancer, and Inserm.
Molecular Oncology is an open access journal owned by FEBS. The journal considers Research Articles from the fields of basic, translational, and clinical cancer research. We also publish Review Articles, Commentaries and Policy Papers discussing emerging concepts in cancer research, cancer diagnosis, prevention and care. Journal profits are re-invested in the scientific community. Manuscripts are handled by a team of dedicated academic Section Editors under a transparent peer review scheme.
The mission of Cancer Prevention Europe (CPE), a consortium of organizations across the whole of Europe, is to reduce morbidity and mortality from cancer in European populations through prevention and earlier detection of the disease. This will be accomplished through (1) research to optimize the implementation of known preventive strategies, (2) the dissemination of established best practices in prevention, in order to see innovative research translated into effective cancer prevention guidelines and policies nationally and internationally, and (3) research to identify novel targets for prevention.
Let’s Talk
For general information please email us at summerschool@cancercoreeurope.eu.
Financial aspects of the Summer School are managed by Gustave Roussy: cce@gustaveroussy.fr
#CCESumSchool25
Meet the Organising Team
Kate Donoghue
CRUK Cambridge Centre
United Kingdom
Carme Harris Amoros
Vall d’Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO)
Spain
Anna Lück
National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg – DKFZ
Germany
Stefina Milanova
Karolinska Institutet
Sweden, Stockholm
Petra Oberrauch
National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg – DKFZ
Germany
Yago Galera Hauer
Vall d'Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO)
Spain
With the support of:
Maialen Fernandez Serra
Vall d’Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO)
Spain
Emma Pailler
Gustave Roussy
France
Graziella Zonnekynd
Gustave Roussy
France