A research project in which the ibs.GRANADA participates receives 500.000 euros from the Spanish Association against Cancer
The Scientific Foundation of the Spanish Association Against Cancer (AECC) has awarded a €500.000 grant to the project "Genetic and metabolomics screening towards precision medicine in cancer prevention." The project aims to identify the relationship between genetic factors in different types of cancer (colon and rectum, gastric, breast, prostate, and chronic lymphocytic leukemia), metabolomics, and lifestyle.
This consortium, led by researcher Víctor Moreno (IDIBELL, Catalan Institute of Oncology, University of Barcelona, and CIBERESP), involves 15 coordinated translational groups. Among them is the Granada node, formed by a multidisciplinary team of staff from the University of Granada and the San Cecilio University Hospital in Granada, led by researcher María del Rocío Olmedo Requena.
Most of the staff of this node in Granada is assigned to the D-07 Research Group of Preventive Medicine and Public Health of the Biosanitary Research Institute of Granada: María del Rocío Olmedo Requena, Rocío Barrios Rodríguez, Macarena Lozano Lorca, Inmaculada Salcedo Bellido and José Juan Jiménez Moleón.
In addition, Benito Mirón Pozo and Antonio Jiménez Pacheco, clinicians from the Management Units of General Surgery and the Digestive System and Urology respectively, both belonging to the San Cecilio University Hospital in Granada, participate.
The aim of the AECC-funded project is to assess the association of a large number of known and unknown factors with cancer and, more importantly, to use them in combination to estimate the risk of developing cancer and improve prevention.
The project is made up of a consolidated consortium of research institutes from 12 Spanish provinces, coordinated by the CIBER of Epidemiology and Public Health (ISCIII).
In the words of Victor Moreno: "We have carried out a large epidemiological study in Spain, MCC-Spain, with a multi-case-control design, between September 2008 and December 2013 (mccspain.org) which has recruited 6008 people with common cancers (colorectal, breast, stomach, prostate and chronic lymphocytic leukemia) and 4098 population controls.
In addition to epidemiological and dietary data, the researchers have obtained biological samples that will be analyzed to determine the individuals' genetics and metabolomics. "Our ultimate goal is to identify biomarkers that can be used to identify individuals at highest risk of developing one of the five cancers studied, not only to reduce their morbidity and social impact, but also healthcare costs," the researchers state.
The project coordinator participated in the award ceremony of the AECC Scientific Foundation recently held in Madrid (on World Cancer Research Day) chaired by Her Majesty the Queen, as Honorary President of the AECC and the Foundation AECC scientist.
