"Horizonte Europa incluye entre sus principales innovaciones el lanzamiento de Misiones como una nueva forma de implementar la I+D+I con un impacto social y económico en áreas de interés para la UE y sus ciudadanos. Estas misiones son definidas como una cartera de acciones interdisciplinares basada en la I+D+I, destinadas a alcanzar una meta audaz e inspiradora, a la vez que cuantificable, que tiene un gran impacto en la sociedad."
"El Plan Europeo de Lucha contra el Cáncer constituye un compromiso político para invertir la tendencia en la lucha contra el cáncer y es un paso más hacia una Unión Europea de la Salud fuerte y una Unión más segura, mejor preparada y más resiliente"
Bilbomática participa activamente, en este marco de la lucha contra el Cáncer. Nuestro proyecto LUCIA, forma parte de un grupo de 5 proyectos que recibieron financiación de la Comisión Europea a través del programa Horizonte Europa (HORIZON-MISS-2021-CANCER-02-03). Para trabajar en el objetivo del programa Misión Cáncer.
GENIAL: Understanding gene environment interaction in alcohol-related hepatocellular carcinoma
"Alcohol-related hepatocellular carcinoma (ALD-HCC) is, in Europe, the leading cause of liver cancer (2nd most common cause of cancer-related death worldwide, affecting both men and women). ALD-HCC has a median 5-year survival rate of 15%. Yet, the prognosis is driven by the tumour stage, with curative options providing a 5-year survival exceeding 70% for early-stage HCC (<20% of cases). Therefore, interventions aiming to improve prevention and early detection are key. ALD-HCC results from the interplay between environmental determinants and genetic variations. A comprehensive characterisation of environmental factors (e.g. diet, lifestyle) linked to ALD-HCC is still lacking. We recently performed the 1st genome-wide association study of ALD-HCC and identified predisposing genetic variations. However, their role on alcohol-related liver carcinogenesis needs clarification and the genetic architecture of ALD-HCC remains mostly unknown. GENIAL brings together partners with unique expertise in clinical hepatology, single-cell and spatial multi-omics, artificial intelligence (AI) and communication and dissemination capacities. Our aim is to 1) portray genetic and environmental determinants promoting ALD-HCC; 2) evaluate how they interact at cellular level in human samples and preclinical models to get novel insights into liver carcinogenesis, and identify chemopreventive targets; and 3) assess how these determinants modulate the ALD-HCC risk in prospective cohorts of patients included in HCC surveillance programs. Environmental factors will be comprehensively characterised in an ongoing clinical trial designed to evaluate alternative methods for early-stage HCC detection. Finally, AI models, reaching the minimal viable product stage by the end of GENIAL, will be used to integrate genetic and non-genetic information (including digital imaging) to develop novel cost-effective strategies towards prevention and early-stage detection of ALD-HCC in at-risk individuals."
ELMUMY: Elucidation of risk factors and health determinants associated with progression of monoclonal gammopathies to multiple myeloma
"Multiple Myeloma is a chronic malignancy characterized by slow progression and recurrences. Currently there is no effective cure since eventually the disease develops resistance to all the available therapeutic approaches. Although recent advances have expanded our understanding of the cellular functions associated with health to disease transition, recurrence and response to therapy, critical aspects of this complex pathology remain to be elucidated.
Application of omics technologies, and bioinformatics approaches on highly annotated samples obtained from all informative states (monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance [MGUS], smoldering MM [sMM], active MM [MM]) could identify biological pathways and molecules responsible for the onset, progression and resistance to therapy of Multiple Myeloma. In parallel, particular emphasis will be given to elucidating the health determinants and risk factors associated with progression to active MM from MGUS/sMM by using extensive demographic, lifestyle and exposure datasets.
MGUS is present in 3-5% of the ageing European population and every year, 1% progress to incurable MM that imposes a significant burden on EU societies and health systems. Thus, the best chances of curing MM may be in preventing its progression in the first place. Moreover, there is need of experimental models that recapitulate myeloma progression.
We propose an interdisciplinary approach bringing together clinicians and researchers aiming to integrate epidemiological, clinical and experimental datasets in order to create a molecular model of cellular processes associated with the onset of active MM and response to therapy. The proposed systems medicine approach could yield clinically actionable molecular features that could improve MM patient management. Moreover, the integration of lifestyle, clinical and omics information will provide specific profiles for each patient allowing personalized diagnosis, prevention, and therapeutic approaches."
DISCERN: Discovering the causes of three poorly understood cancers in Europe (renal, pancreatic and colorectal)
"The overall goal of DISCERN is to understand the causes of three poorly understood cancers in Europe; renal, pancreatic and colorectal cancer, and help to explain their geographical distribution, including their high incidence in central and eastern Europe. This will be achieved by combining large-scale European biorepositories comprising population-based cohorts and tumour case-series with state-of-the-art molecular profiling techniques and machine learning approaches. In particular, DISCERN will identify potential new causal risk factors for the three cancers using novel exposomics and proteomics scans, as well detailed geospatial and environmental exposure information from 16 large-scale epidemiological cohorts including almost 900,000 individuals. It will also explore biological mechanisms on how these risk factors are potentially causing these cancer types with a focus on promoting factors in normal tissues using deep sequencing, single cell multi-omics and spatial proteomics. The causal effects of identified cancer risk factors and the cellular signalling responses they trigger will be further evaluated using a panel of stem cells and colon, renal and pancreatic 3D organoids. The results from DISCERN will be disseminated to citizens, patients and policy makers through collaborating patient and participant organizations. DISCERN will provide the critical evidence base required to develop new prevention strategies to tackle the growing burden of renal, pancreatic and colorectal cancer in Europe."
MELCAYA: Novel health care strategies for melanoma in children, adolescents and young adults
"In childhood, adolescence and young adults (CAYA), melanoma is under-studied and non-existing tailored clinical guidelines and standardized approaches lead to a very low diagnostic accuracy. The MELCAYA project aims to understand risk factors and determinants of melanoma to improve the prevention, diagnosis and prognosis of melanomas in CAYAs through a strong international consortium with experts from 10 countries in different disciplines (e.g. oncology, paediatrics, ethics, policy making), and sectors (e.g. academic centers, SMEs, hospitals, patient associations). MELCAYA will work on different approaches. 1) By integrating existing reference European cohorts and registries, studies of genetic and environmental risk factors and progression of melanoma in CAYA will be performed through different omic methods, and a novel taxonomy of CAYA melanoma will be generated. 2) MELCAYA will also develop image-based robust and trustworthy machine learning tools and a pan-European second-opinion platform for better diagnosis specifically designed for CAYA. 3) Moreover, the validation of minimally and non-invasive disruptive tools based on artificial intelligence and volatilomics detection from exhaled breath and skin will lead to earlier detection and more accurate prognosis of melanoma in CAYA. 4) Finally, through the evidence gathered, MELCAYA will design and implement public health strategies and will actively involve patients and the general population. The results of MELCAYA will maximize its impact by making its data and results accessible and re-usable through integration into UNCAN.eu."
