17/04/2026 - Press release
After more than a decade of research, a new-generation CAR-T therapy developed by VHIO, in collaboration with the Hospital del Mar Research Institute, has been administered to patients for the first time in a phase 1 clinical trial. This breakthrough has been made possible thanks to continued funding from the Spanish Association Against Cancer (Asociación Española Contra el Cáncer), with the support of Ausonia, and from the Breast Cancer Research Foundation to the laboratory of Dr Joaquín Arribas at VHIO. This CAR-T combines recognition of the p95HER2 protein, which is specific to one third of HER2+ tumours, with the secretion of a bispecific antibody to activate the immune system and enhance the anti-tumour response in HER2+ solid tumours. The academic phase 1 clinical trial CATHERINE will test this therapy for the first time in patients with solid tumours overexpressing HER2 who have exhausted all therapeutic options and are candidates to receive a cell therapy. The aim is to assess safety and preliminary efficacy. The study, to be carried out at VHIO and Hospital del Mar, is funded by the Spanish Association Against Cancer, with the support of Ausonia and the Carlos III Health Institute.
10/03/2026 - Press release
The absence of a protein, the kinase IKKα, enables tumor cells to cluster and survive during dissemination. The findings, published in Nature Communications, open the door to new prognostic markers and potential therapeutic strategies. Targeting tumor cell adhesion impairs their ability to migrate and form metastases. The study was conducted using a preclinical mouse model
Més informació "Researchers identify a key mechanism that promotes colorectal cancer metastasis"
03/03/2026 - Press release
They are part of the sixty research grants awarded by the organization, with total funding of more than thirteen million euros. The Spanish Association Against Cancer has awarded three of its research grants to projects led by researchers from the Hospital del Mar Research Institute (HMRIB). In total, sixty grants have been awarded: 54 to research projects and six accreditations to research centers. Altogether, this represents an investment in research of more than thirteen million euros.
16/01/2026 - Press release
Researchers from the Hospital del Mar Research Institute and the Vall d'Hebron Institute of Oncology have demonstrated, in animal models, the role played by these cells in the development of cancer cells. The study, published in Science Advances, shows that eliminating these cells at an early stage of tumor growth promotes tumor proliferation and the formation of metastases. By contrast, combining their elimination with an inhibitor of the CCL2 molecule reduces tumor size and eliminates metastases.
04/12/2025 - Press release
A study from the Hospital del Mar Research Institute, published in The Journal of Clinical Investigation, indicates that the high expression of the estrogen receptor is the main factor preventing the most common type of breast cancer, luminal breast cancer, from responding to immunotherapy. The high presence of the estrogen receptor sequesters the LCOR molecule, whose action on tumor cells is necessary to make tumors visible to the immune system. In experimental models, the researchers found that combining immunotherapy with endocrine therapy allows LCOR to function and the immune system to attack the tumor. At the same time, they have generated a modified version of the LCOR molecule that sensitizes tumors to immunotherapy, including those with hormone receptors. The next goal is to study this molecule combined with immunotherapy in clinical trials.
20/11/2025 - Press release
This discovery, carried out by a multidisciplinary team led by researchers from the Hospital del Mar Research Institute and the Sant Joan de Déu Research Institute, opens the door to understanding the mechanisms that trigger tumour proliferation and to exploring potential therapeutic targets. Researchers suspect that the genetic alteration that activates the mechanisms behind this type of cancer occurs during embryonic development. Ewing sarcoma is a highly aggressive tumour that can affect bones and soft tissues, and is the most frequent bone tumour in childhood.
Més informació "Researchers identify the cell of origin of Ewing Sarcoma"
10/07/2025 - Press release
The journal Cancer Cell has published a study led by the Hospital del Mar Research Institute, together with researchers from GEICAM, identifying malignant cells carrying the TIM-3 protein as a central factor in their ability to generate breast cancer metastasis. This molecule allows cancer cells to survive the most critical and challenging stage of metastasis-when they first reach a new organ-by evading immune system attacks. At the same time, it may serve as a marker of poor prognosis and metastasis risk in patients with TIM-3-positive tumors. This discovery opens the door to the potential use of treatments that block TIM-3 to prevent metastasis before it becomes clinically evident.
06/06/25 - Press release
Having high blood levels of a type of molecule, spermidine, before surgery increases the risk of tumor recurrence after surgery by 4.7 times. This risk decreases if spermidine levels in the patient's blood drop after surgery. The study is published in the Annals of Surgery journal and opens the door to determining which individuals are at higher risk, either before entering the operating room or just afterward, in order to offer them complementary or specific treatment.
16/05/2025 - Press release
Researchers from the Stem Cells and Cancer team at the Josep Carreras Leukaemia Research Institute and the Hospital del Mar Research Institute have developed a method to confidently produce blood cell precursors from stem cells in mice, by activating a set of seven key genes in the laboratory. The team, led by Dr. Anna Bigas, takes a step forward towards the production of precursor cells able to restore the bone marrow of blood cancer patients, in a successful example of regenerative medicine.
15/04/2025 - Press release
A study by researchers from the Hospital del Mar Research Institute, IIBB-CSIC-IDIBAPS, Mayo Clinic, IBYME (CONICET), and CaixaResearch Institute demonstrates the role of the Galectin-1 protein in the nucleus of the cells surrounding the tumor-fibroblasts-contributing to their activation. Activated fibroblasts promote tumor growth and spread, while also conferring resistance to treatments. This may be one of the reasons behind the high aggressiveness of pancreatic cancer, which has a five-year survival rate of only 10%. The study's findings open the door to new therapeutic strategies against this type of cancer, focusing on the possibility of inhibiting this protein within the cells that surround and protect the tumor.
Més informació "Key to the high aggressiveness of pancreatic cancer identified"
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