International Cooperation

The DKFZ has collaborated with the MD Anderson Cancer Center (MDACC) in Houston since 2008, and the relationship was made official with an agreement to join forces as sister institutes. Collaborations between the two centers have included numerous joint projects in basic and translational research, as well as short-term research visits for junior scientists.

The DKFZ and Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Toronto have the joint mission to accelerate the discovery process that leads to improved patient treatment and care. The centers signed a joint memorandum of understanding in September 2017 that underlined their commitment to work together towards this goal by establishing internationally highly competitive research and training programs. A particular focus will be on the development of an initiative for training clinician scientists and medical scientists.

Existing interactions between the DKFZ and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) have intensified since 2017 with a series of joint thematic workshops. These workshops were the first step in the establishment of a series of collaborative programs in topics ranging from Radiooncology to Cancer Systems Biology. 

In 2019, the DKFZ and the International Agency for Research on Cancer IARC signed a memorandum of understanding expressing their commitment to join forces in strengthening the evidence-base that underpins cancer prevention and control.

The DKFZ and the Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute & Hospital in China join forces through common research projects, training and education of young scientist and joint scientific events in the field of cancer precision medicine.

The German-Israeli Helmholtz Research School in Cancer Biology was established in 2012 on the basis of a long-term scientific cooperation between the DKFZ and the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot. The graduate school offers the unique opportunity to carry out doctoral research in an international environment, as well as to spend a few months studying at the partner institute. Since 2018, the graduate school has been expanded to include bridging positions that support students before and after their graduate studies (Cancer-TRAX Program).

The French Institute national de la santé et de la recherche médicale (Inserm) has hosted the DKFZ Inserm Unit “Microbiology and Infectious Diseases” since 2012. The unit is led by H-J Delecluse, whose research focuses on cancers associated with Epstein-Barr virus.

In September 2019 the DKFZ, the Ministry of Health and Social Services of Namibia and the University of Namibia signed a memorandum of understanding to collaborate in cancer research and in education and training programs. The focus of this partnership is on cancer prevention strategies and imaging based cancer diagnostic technologies.

The DKFZ and the Clinica Alemana have been working together successfully for many years, particularly in the field of radiotherapy.

Scientists from the Chulabhorn Research Academy and the Chulabhorn Research Institute are successfully collaborating with researchers from the DKFZ in areas such as radiotherapy, paediatric oncology and bioinformatics. A memorandum of understanding was signed in 2019.

The DKFZ is working together with colleagues in Greece to establish the Athens Comprehensive Cancer Center. The cooperation is focused on collaborative international research activities and exchange visits for scientists. It is supported by the Helmholtz Association’s Initiative and Networking Fund, in the scope of the European Partnering Program. 

In the Cancer Core Europe consortium, the DKFZ and the National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) have joined together with six other leading European Comprehensive Cancer Centers, the Cambridge Cancer Center, Gustave Roussy in Villjuif near Paris, the Netherlands Cancer Institute in Amsterdam, the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, the Vall d’Hebron Institute of Oncology in Barcelona, and the Istituto Nazionale die Tumori in Milan. These centers form a united infrastructure for carrying out innovative projects and clinical studies in the areas of personalized cancer medicine. The goal is to accelerate the transfer of research results into clinical application for the benefit of patients in Europe.

The DKFZ is involved in the European initiative Cancer Prevention Europe, coordinated by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). Cancer Prevention Europe is a newly established alliance that will bring together coordination, research and training in the area of cancer prevention at the European level. It will address areas including, for example, cancer registries, cancer etiology, and the evaluation of interventional measures for cancer prevention. 

In 2025, the DKFZ joined the International Alliance for Cancer Early Detection (ACED), a partnership between Cancer Research UK, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, The University of Manchester, the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), University College London, Knight Cancer Institute at OHSU and The University of Cambridge. The Alliance exists to work on transformative ideas in early detection, collaborate with industry partners and accelerate patient benefit.