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Discovery research is the starting point for the development of more effective anti‐cancer treatments. It requires an interdisciplinary research environment with first‐class infrastructural support in which curiosity‐driven research can lead to new concepts for treating cancer. Translating such research findings to clinical practice requires complementary skills and infrastructures, including high‐quality clinical facilities, access to patient cohorts and participation of pharma. This complex ecosystem has yielded many new but also “me too” treatment regimens, especially in immuno‐oncology resulting in an extremely high pricing of anti‐cancer agents. The costs of antibodies, vaccines, and cell therapies charged by pharma stand out although the concepts and methodologies have been largely developed in academia, financed from public funds. Comprehensive Cancer Centres (CCCs) covering a coherent stretch of the cancer research continuum are well‐positioned to make these personalized treatments more affordable, but this will require restructuring of the way the translational cancer research continuum is funded.

Analyses of inequalities related to prevention and cancer therapeutics/care show disparities between countries with different economic standing, and within countries with high Gross Domestic Product. The development of basic technological and biological research provides clinical and prevention opportunities that make their implementation into healthcare systems more complex, mainly due to the growth of Personalized/Precision Cancer Medicine (PCM). Initiatives like the USA‐Cancer Moonshot and the EU‐Mission on Cancer and Europe's Beating Cancer Plan are initiated to boost cancer prevention and therapeutics/care innovation and to mitigate present inequalities. The conference organized by the Pontifical Academy of Sciences in collaboration with the European Academy of Cancer Sciences discussed the inequality problem, dependent on the economic status of a country, the increasing demands for infrastructure supportive of innovative research and its implementation in healthcare and prevention programs. Establishing translational research defined as a coherent cancer research continuum is still a challenge. Research has to cover the entire continuum from basic to outcomes research for clinical and prevention modalities. Comprehensive Cancer Centres (CCCs) are of critical importance for integrating research innovations to preclinical and clinical research, as for ensuring state‐of‐the‐art patient care within healthcare systems. International collaborative networks between CCCs are necessary to reach the critical mass of infrastructures and patients for PCM research, and for introducing prevention modalities and new treatments effectively. Outcomes and health economics research are required to assess the cost‐effectiveness of new interventions, currently a missing element in the research portfolio. Data sharing and critical mass are essential for innovative research to develop PCM. Despite advances in cancer research, cancer incidence and prevalence is growing. Making cancer research infrastructures accessible for all patients, considering the increasing inequalities, requires science policy actions incentivizing research aimed at prevention and cancer therapeutics/care with an increased focus on patients' needs and cost‐effective healthcare.

European cancer research stakeholders met in October 2022 in Heidelberg, Germany, at the 5th Gago conference on European Cancer Policy, to discuss the current cancer research and cancer care policy landscape in Europe. Meeting participants highlighted gaps in the existing European programmes focusing on cancer research, including Europe's Beating Cancer Plan (EBCP), the Mission on Cancer (MoC), Understanding Cancer (UNCAN.eu), and the joint action CRANE, and put forward the next priorities, in the form of the Heidelberg Manifesto for cancer research. This meeting report presents all discussions that shed light on how infrastructures can be effectively shaped for translational, prevention, clinical and outcomes cancer research, with a focus on implementation and sustainability and while engaging patients and the public. In addition, we summarize recommendations on how to introduce frameworks for the digitalization of European cancer research. Finally, we discuss what structures, commitment, and resources are needed to establish a collaborative cancer research environment in Europe to achieve the scale required for innovation.

Key stakeholders from the cancer research continuum met in May 2021 at the European Cancer Research Summit in Porto to discuss priorities and specific action points required for the successful implementation of the European Cancer Mission and Europe's Beating Cancer Plan (EBCP). Speakers presented a unified view about the need to establish high‐quality, networked infrastructures to decrease cancer incidence, increase the cure rate, improve patient's survival and quality of life, and deal with research and care inequalities across the European Union (EU). These infrastructures, featuring Comprehensive Cancer Centres (CCCs) as key components, will integrate care, prevention and research across the entire cancer continuum to support the development of personalized/precision cancer medicine in Europe. The three pillars of the recommended European infrastructures – namely translational research, clinical/prevention trials and outcomes research – were pondered at length. Speakers addressing the future needs of translational research focused on the prospects of multiomics assisted preclinical research, progress in Molecular and Digital Pathology, immunotherapy, liquid biopsy and science data. The clinical/prevention trial session presented the requirements for next‐generation, multicentric trials entailing unified strategies for patient stratification, imaging, and biospecimen acquisition and storage. The third session highlighted the need for establishing outcomes research infrastructures to cover primary prevention, early detection, clinical effectiveness of innovations, health‐related quality‐of‐life assessment, survivorship research and health economics. An important outcome of the Summit was the presentation of the Porto Declaration, which called for a collective and committed action throughout Europe to develop the cancer research infrastructures indispensable for fostering innovation and decreasing inequalities within and between member states. Moreover, the Summit guidelines will assist decision making in the context of a unique EU‐wide cancer initiative that, if expertly implemented, will decrease the cancer death toll and improve the quality of life of those confronted with cancer, and this is carried out at an affordable cost.

A comprehensive translational cancer research approach focused on personalized and precision medicine, and covering the entire cancer research–care–prevention continuum has the potential to achieve in 2030 a 10‐year cancer‐specific survival for 75% of patients diagnosed in European Union (EU) member states with a well‐developed healthcare system. Concerted actions across this continuum that spans from basic and preclinical research through clinical and prevention research to outcomes research, along with the establishment of interconnected high‐quality infrastructures for translational research, clinical and prevention trials and outcomes research, will ensure that science‐driven and social innovations benefit patients and individuals at risk across the EU. European infrastructures involving comprehensive cancer centres (CCCs) and CCC‐like entities will provide researchers with access to the required critical mass of patients, biological materials and technological resources and can bridge research with healthcare systems. Here, we prioritize research areas to ensure a balanced research portfolio and provide recommendations for achieving key targets. Meeting these targets will require harmonization of EU and national priorities and policies, improved research coordination at the national, regional and EU level and increasingly efficient and flexible funding mechanisms. Long‐term support by the EU and commitment of Member States to specialized schemes are also needed for the establishment and sustainability of trans‐border infrastructures and networks. In addition to effectively engaging policymakers, all relevant stakeholders within the entire continuum should consensually inform policy through evidence‐based advice.

Cdkn2ab knockout mice develop skin tumours but this phenotype is lost on backcrossing of the mice. Here, the authors describe a genetic variant encompassing Wnt7b that synergises with Cdkn2ab loss and is required for tumour formation in these mice.

In order to secure high‐quality cancer care for increasing numbers of cancer patients in the upcoming decades, the complete continuum of cancer research and cancer care needs a thorough overhaul, with more emphasis on prevention and early detection, and a greater focus on the development of innovative treatments that are also scrutinised for effectiveness and quality‐of‐life aspects. Therefore, under‐resourced research areas, such as primary prevention, early diagnosis/secondary prevention (Song et al., ; Wild et al., ) and outcomes research (Cavers et al., ), should be given more emphasis, whereas basic, preclinical and clinical cancer research requires more innovation and effective collaboration to develop more effective treatments at an affordable cost. Innovative collaborative research in this translational trajectory requires the participation of well‐resourced and well‐organised institutions that are committed to high scientific and ethical standards. Offering focused funding to distinct segments of this research continuum concomitant with incentives to aspire to high‐quality standards is the most effective route to achieve these goals. Therefore, a rigorous quality assessment system for institutions operating in this research continuum is a high priority.

Summary: Fibroblast growth factor receptor 1 (FGFR1) is frequently amplified in human small-cell lung cancer (SCLC), but its contribution to SCLC and other lung tumors has remained elusive. Here, we assess the tumorigenic capacity of constitutive-active FGFR1 (FGFR1K656E) with concomitant RB and P53 depletion in mouse lung. Our results reveal a context-dependent effect of FGFR1K656E: it impairs SCLC development from CGRPPOS neuroendocrine (NE) cells, which are considered the major cell of origin of SCLC, whereas it promotes SCLC and low-grade NE bronchial lesions from tracheobronchial-basal cells. Moreover, FGFR1K656E induces lung adenocarcinoma (LADC) from most lung cell compartments. However, its expression is not sustained in LADC originating from CGRPPOS cells. Therefore, cell context and tumor stage should be taken into account when considering FGFR1 inhibition as a therapeutic option. : Ferone et al. show that inducing FGFR signaling in lung neuroendocrine (NE) cells of Rb;p53 mice results in impairment of SCLC and enhancement of peripheral NE lesions. The location and tumor characteristics depend on the targeted cell type. Rb;p53;Fgfr1 mice also develop adenocarcinomas with the incidence depending on the targeted cell type.

Rodent models of malignant mesothelioma help facilitate the understanding of the biology of this highly lethal cancer and to develop and test new interventions. Introducing the same genetic lesions as found in human mesothelioma in mice results in tumors that show close resemblance with the human disease counterpart. This includes the extensive inflammatory responses that characterize human malignant mesothelioma. The relatively fast development of mesothelioma in mice when the appropriate combination of lesions is introduced, with or without exposure to asbestos, make the autochthonous models particularly useful for testing new treatment strategies in an immunocompetent setting, whereas Patient-Derived Xenograft models are particularly useful to assess effects of inter- and intra-tumor heterogeneity and human-specific features of mesothelioma. It is to be expected that new insights obtained by studying these experimental systems will lead to new more effective treatments for this devastating disease.

Chromodomain helicase DNA-binding (CHD) chromatin remodelers regulate transcription and DNA repair. They govern cell-fate decisions during embryonic development and are often deregulated in human pathologies. Chd1-8 show upon germline disruption pronounced, often developmental lethal phenotypes. Here we show that contrary to Chd1-8 disruption, Chd9-/-animals are viable, fertile and display no developmental defects or disease predisposition. Germline deletion of Chd9 only moderately affects gene expression in tissues and derived cells, whereas acute depletion in human cancer cells elicits more robust changes suggesting that CHD9 is a highly context-dependent chromatin regulator that, surprisingly, is dispensable for mouse development.

The European Academy of Cancer Sciences (EACS) is an independent advisory body of well‐recognised medical specialists and researchers striving to create a compelling interactive continuum of cancer research, from innovative basic research to implementation of state‐of‐the‐art evidence‐based cancer care and prevention. Achieving the above will entail bridging high‐quality basic and preclinical cancer research to research on prevention, early detection and therapeutics as well as improving coordination of translational research efforts across Europe. The latter is expected to be expedited through quality assuring translational cancer research in Comprehensive Cancer Centres – entities that link research with the healthcare system – and networks of cancer research centres. Achieving a critical mass of expertise, resources and patients is crucial. Improving late translational research, which involves clinical studies to assess effectiveness, and added value for the health care is also a high priority. Both high‐quality Big Data collections and the intelligent use of these data will promote innovation in cancer research and support outcomes research to assess clinical utility, quality of cancer care and long‐term follow‐up of treated patients. The EACS supports the mission‐oriented approach recently proposed by the European Commission in Horizon Europe to deal with major challenges and would like to persuade the EU and its member states to formally launch a mission in cancer to boost and streamline the cancer research continuum in Europe. Building a coherent translational cancer research continuum with a focus on patients and individuals at risk will require, however, foresight as well as the extensive and continuous provision of evidence‐based advice to inform policy.

Summary: Small-cell lung cancer is the most aggressive type of lung cancer, characterized by a remarkable response to chemotherapy followed by development of resistance. Here, we describe SCLC subtypes in Mycl- and Nfib-driven GEMM that include CDH1-high peripheral primary tumor lesions and CDH1-negative, aggressive intrapulmonary metastases. Cisplatin treatment preferentially eliminates the latter, thus revealing a striking differential response. Using a combined transcriptomic and proteomic approach, we find a marked reduction in proliferation and metabolic rewiring following cisplatin treatment and present evidence for a distinctive metabolic and structural profile defining intrinsically resistant populations. This offers perspectives for effective combination therapies that might also hold promise for treating human SCLC, given the very similar response of both mouse and human SCLC to cisplatin. : Böttger et al. show the presence of histologically and molecularly distinct sub-populations of small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) in advanced mouse models. They demonstrate that the heterogeneity of SCLC is responsible for the differential sensitivity to cisplatin and identify metabolic circuitries that likely contribute to cisplatin resistance. Keywords: SCLC, mouse models, tumor heterogeneity, cisplatin, chemotherapy, RNA-seq, transcriptomics, mass spectrometry, proteomics

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is an aggressive neuroendocrine tumor, and no effective treatment is available to date. Mouse models of SCLC based on the inactivation of Rb1 and Trp53 show frequent amplifications of the Nfib and Mycl genes. Here, we report that, although overexpression of either transcription factor accelerates tumor growth, NFIB specifically promotes metastatic spread. High NFIB levels are associated with expansive growth of a poorly differentiated and almost exclusively E-cadherin (CDH1)-negative invasive tumor cell population. Consistent with the mouse data, we find that NFIB is overexpressed in almost all tested human metastatic high-grade neuroendocrine lung tumors, warranting further assessment of NFIB as a tumor progression marker in a clinical setting.

Abstract Human cancers modeled in Genetically Engineered Mouse Models (GEMMs) can provide important mechanistic insights into the molecular basis of tumor development and enable testing of new intervention strategies. The inherent complexity of these models, with often multiple modified tumor suppressor genes and oncogenes, has hampered their use as preclinical models for validating cancer genes and drug targets. In our newly developed approach for the fast generation of tumor cohorts we have overcome this obstacle, as exemplified for three GEMMs; two lung cancer models and one mesothelioma model. Three elements are central for this system; (i) The efficient derivation of authentic Embryonic Stem Cells (ESCs) from established GEMMs, (ii) the routine introduction of transgenes of choice in these GEMM‐ESCs by Flp recombinase‐mediated integration and (iii) the direct use of the chimeric animals in tumor cohorts. By applying stringent quality controls, the GEMM‐ESC approach proofs to be a reliable and effective method to speed up cancer gene assessment and target validation. As proof‐of‐principle, we demonstrate that MycL1 is a key driver gene in Small Cell Lung Cancer.

The transmembrane protein deleted in colorectal cancer (DCC) and its ligand, netrin-1, regulate synaptogenesis during development, but their function in the mature central nervous system is unknown. Given that DCC promotes cell-cell adhesion, is expressed by neurons, and activates proteins that signal at synapses, we hypothesized that DCC expression by neurons regulates synaptic function and plasticity in the adult brain. We report that DCC is enriched in dendritic spines of pyramidal neurons in wild-type mice, and we demonstrate that selective deletion of DCC from neurons in the adult forebrain results in the loss of long-term potentiation (LTP), intact long-term depression, shorter dendritic spines, and impaired spatial and recognition memory. LTP induction requires Src activation of NMDA receptor (NMDAR) function. DCC deletion severely reduced Src activation. We demonstrate that enhancing NMDAR function or activating Src rescues LTP in the absence of DCC. We conclude that DCC activation of Src is required for NMDAR-dependent LTP and certain forms of learning and memory.

The ability of retroviruses and transposons to insert their genetic material into host DNA makes them widely used tools in molecular biology, cancer research and gene therapy. However, these systems have biases that may strongly affect research outcomes. To address this issue, we generated very large datasets consisting of ~ 120,000 to ~ 180,000 unselected integrations in the mouse genome for the Sleeping Beauty (SB) and piggyBac (PB) transposons, and the Mouse Mammary Tumor Virus (MMTV). We analyzed ~ 80 (epi)genomic features to generate bias maps at both local and genome-wide scales. MMTV showed a remarkably uniform distribution of integrations across the genome. More distinct preferences were observed for the two transposons, with PB showing remarkable resemblance to bias profiles of the Murine Leukemia Virus. Furthermore, we present a model where target site selection is directed at multiple scales. At a large scale, target site selection is similar across systems, and defined by domain-oriented features, namely expression of proximal genes, proximity to CpG islands and to genic features, chromatin compaction and replication timing. Notable differences between the systems are mainly observed at smaller scales, and are directed by a diverse range of features. To study the effect of these biases on integration sites occupied under selective pressure, we turned to insertional mutagenesis (IM) screens. In IM screens, putative cancer genes are identified by finding frequently targeted genomic regions, or Common Integration Sites (CISs). Within three recently completed IM screens, we identified 7%-33% putative false positive CISs, which are likely not the result of the oncogenic selection process. Moreover, results indicate that PB, compared to SB, is more suited to tag oncogenes.