Research projects

Clinical research:

Health economy research:

Modeling and validating the cost and clinical pathway of colorectal cancer (crc)

Translational, multidisciplinary research (surgery, oncology, radiology, pathology, molecular biology):

Biomarkers -diagnostic, prognostic, predictive, monitoring – in colorectal primary cancer and in liver metastases from colorectal cancer
Drug sensitivity testing of crc cell lines
Drug sensitivity testing of resected or biopsy samples from crc liver metastases
Biomarkers in anal cancer
Micrometastases - circulating tumor cells, disseminated tumor cells and cell free DNA – in colorectal cancer and other epithelial cancers: Methods of detection, genetic characterization, potential as prognostic and monitoring biomarkers

Planned research / long term objectives for the group:

Continue inclusion of patients and biobanking for one more year, continue follow-up of included patients for five years (recurrence, death), include more monitoring blood tests (liquid biopsy)
A lot of molecular analyses to be performed on already sampled material

Short about strategy to succeed with planned research / long term objectives:

Continue strong interaction and cooperation in the multidisciplinary team, creating and maintaining a real joint effort in translational research
Extend and improve international collaboration – aggregate patient data from many large cohorts
Expand the cooperation with pathologists and oncologists / surgeons in many hospitals to perform the national multicenter study on primary crc, sampling formalin fixed tumor tissue from diagnostic biobanks (pathology), creating TMA’s for automated, multiplex immunohistochemistry based study on protein biomarkers (recently established in lab)
Continue to improve methods for growing cancer cells in culture for testing of drug sensitivity in our own lab, and extend cooperation with Vall D’Hebron for growing cancer cells in pdx-models, as a basis for personalized medicine.
Establish the method of sampling liver metastases with biopsy needles, growing in cell culture followed by drug sensitivity testing
Extend the cooperation with the Trial unit in Dept of Oncology, OUS and with pharmaceutical companies for clinical trials