Press Releases

The Helmholtz Association and the Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft have awarded the biochemist Oliver Bruns (NCT/UCC Dresden and DKFZ) and the chemist Ellen Sletten (UCLA) with the Helmholtz High Impact Award 2024. Both are honored for their research on a new medical imaging technology in the short-wave infrared (SWIR) range, which has the potential to significantly improve the surgical removal of tumors. The scientific prize, endowed with €50,000, recognizes interdisciplinary research that addresses major challenges in science, industry, or society.

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Funding from the European Research Council (ERC) is regarded as an accolade for scientists at all career stages. With its "Starting Grants", the ERC aims to pave the way to an independent career for excellent young researchers. This year, Jens Puschhof from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) has been awarded the prestigious grant. The funding will enable Puschhof to investigate the role played by bacteria that colonize cancer metastases in the spread of the tumour in the body. The results could reveal new ways of containing or preventing dangerous cancer metastases.

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Resting brain stem cells hardly differ from normal astrocytes, which support the nerve cells in the brain. How can almost identical cells perform such different functions? The key lies in the methylation of their genetic material, which gives these special astrocytes stem cell properties. Scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and Heidelberg University have published their findings in the journal Nature. In mice, the researchers showed that experimentally induced lack of blood flow in the brain epigenetically reprograms astrocytes into brain stem cells, which in turn can give rise to nerve progenitor cells. This discovery shows that astrocytes could potentially be used in regenerative medicine to replace damaged nerve cells.

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What are the characteristics of a cancer cell that are recognized by the immune system? Knowledge of the potential target structures for the immune cells is a basic prerequisite for the development of personalized cancer immunotherapies. Scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the NCT Heidelberg are publishing a highly sensitive method based on mass spectroscopy to identify such tumor-specific "neoepitopes". The analytical method is designed to detect these low abundance protein fragments and requires minimal amounts of sample material.

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This year's Baden-Württemberg State Research Prize (Landesforschungspreis) for excellence in applied research has been awarded to Lena Maier-Hein from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ). The jury honored her pioneering work on the development and validation of new methods of AI-based imaging. The award, which is endowed with 100,000 euros, will be presented at a ceremony on October 22.

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A new vaccine against cancer-causing human papillomaviruses (HPV) is intended to help increase the rate of HPV vaccinations, particularly in developing countries. Scientists at the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) have developed a completely new vaccination concept for this purpose. The vaccine is inexpensive and protects mice against almost all cancer-causing HPV types. In addition to preventing new infections, the vaccine also triggers cellular immune responses against HPV-infected cells and may therefore also have a therapeutic effect against existing infections.

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When the PSA is elevated: for which men is a biopsy necessary to confirm or rule out suspected prostate cancer? In a retrospective study, scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the Department of Urology at Heidelberg University Hospital have shown that the combination of risk markers, systematic evaluation of MRI images and artificial intelligence (AI) can predict the risk of prostate cancer more accurately than before. A biopsy may not be necessary for men at low risk.

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Glioblastomas are highly aggressive, usually incurable brain tumors. If all therapeutic options are exhausted, patients have an average life expectancy of less than two years. Now researchers from the German Cancer Consortium (DKTK) at the West German Tumor Center Essen have made a surprising discovery: in the vicinity of glioblastomas, they found islands of highly potent immune cells in the neighboring bone marrow of the skull, which play a central role in defending against cancer. The new data may open up prospects for innovative therapies. On the other hand, they cast a shadow over conventional strategies.

In the DKTK, the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) in Heidelberg, as a core center, is joining forces with university partner sites in Germany with special oncological expertise on a long-term basis.

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Targeted physical training can improve the quality of life of patients with metastatic breast cancer and alleviate fatigue. This is shown by an international randomized multicenter study. In the course of the training program, which included two sessions per week over nine months, disease- and therapy-related symptoms were markedly reduced, which was associated with a improved quality of life compared to the control group. The German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) was significantly involved in the study, together with the National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg and Heidelberg University Hospital. The project, which was funded by the European Union, was coordinated by the University Medical Center Utrecht.

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The "Friends of the German Cancer Research Center" association supports the DKFZ and aims to help strengthen its position in international competition. With the DKFZ Innovation Award presented at this year's DKFZ annual reception, the association honored Titus Brinker as a researcher whose highly innovative work builds a bridge from research to practical application with commercialization potential. The DKFZ Patient Expert Award was also presented, this year going to Markus Wartenberg, spokesman of the Patient Research Council of the National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT).

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