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The Takeda Oncology Research Prize is awarded annually to researchers with particularly innovative ideas in the field of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). This year, the outstanding work of Dr. Florian Janke (1st prize) and Dr. Melanie Janning (2nd prize), both from the DZL site TLRC Heidelberg, has been honoured. Congratulations!
Immune checkpoint inhibitors are a type of immunotherapy that modulate the immune response to cancer. However, not all patients with advanced NSCLC respond equally to treatment, making early prediction of treatment outcome essential. Dr. Janke (DZL site TLRC Heidelberg, partner DKFZ), in cooperation with the Thoraxklinik Heidelberg, has demonstrated that circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) fragments in the bloodstream can improve the ability to predict response to therapy. The length of the fragments, as well as the DNA building blocks at their ends, provide important information about the tumour. This work, funded by the DZL research programme, earned Dr. Janke the first prize from Takeda.
The second prize was awarded to MD Melanie Janning (DZL site TLRC Heidelberg, partner DKFZ) for her research, titled "Diagnostic leukapheresis shows different phenotypes of circulating NSCLC tumour cells". Dr. Janning further developed the leukapheresis technique to enhance the enrichment and phenotyping of NSCLC circulating tumour cells in the blood of NSCLC patients. Her experiments have led to new insights into various tumour cell phenotypes in relation to the primary tumour. Dr. Janning from the DKFZ Hector Cancer Institute at the University Hospital in Mannheim leads the "Liquid Biopsy and Single Cell Technologies" working group within the Department of Personalised Medical Oncology at the DKFZ in Heidelberg. She is also a senior physician in the Department of Personalised Oncology, with a focus on lung cancer, at the University Hospital in Mannheim.
The Takeda Oncology Research Award
The Takeda Oncology Research award was presented for the seventh time in 2024. The ceremony took place on October 11th during a symposium at the annual meeting of the German Society of Haematology and Medical Oncology (DGHO2024) in Basel. The prize aims to support outstanding research with translational potential and innovative therapies. The winners received €15,000 for 1st place, €10,000 for 2nd place, and €5,000 for 3rd place to further advance their ground-breaking work. Takeda, an international pharmaceutical company, is an official supporter of the National Decade Against Cancer.
Read more in the Takeda press release (In German)
