To better understand cancer, treat it more effectively, and, above all, improve the quality of life of patients, the Ludwig Boltzmann Gesellschaft Open Innovation in Science Center (LBG’s OIS Center) has launched the Cancer Mission Lab program. The goal is to incorporate the knowledge of patients and representatives of patient organizations, self-help groups, and healthcare professionals into the development and implementation of new cancer research projects. Close collaboration between science and society aims to generate new ideas and approaches for the treatment and care of cancer patients, as well as cancer prevention.

Following the initial call for proposals, 1.5 million euro was available to fund two to four projects. LifeBoost is one of three projects funded in the competitive selection process by an international jury.

The project, headed by uro-oncologist Renate Pichler at the Medical University of Innsbruck and now funded as the Cancer Mission Lab, relies on collaboration across a wide range of disciplines and institutions. “Our focus is on patients receiving immunotherapy. Through supportive measures offered digitally and via various communication channels, we aim to improve their quality of life during immunotherapy. Supportive services are not new in and of themselves, but they are currently not sufficiently offered to all patients. Based on the concept of the Comprehensive Cancer Center (CCC), we are testing in this project how we can better integrate these services into clinical routine and make them accessible to patients in a modern way,” explains Renate Pichler. She has been working for many years at the Innsbruck University Department of Urology (Director: Wolfgang Horninger) both clinically and scientifically with immunotherapies for bladder and kidney tumors.

“The targeted involvement of patients leads to personalized treatment and a sustained improvement in quality of life. Those affected actively shape the course of therapy and feel that they receive individual and holistic care. This makes it easier to overcome potential challenges during therapy,” emphasizes project leader Pichler.

Renate Pichler will lead the LifeBoost project together with two researchers from the Innsbruck University Clinic for Psychiatry II: Jens Lehmann, an expert in patient-reported outcomes (PRO), and Bernhard Holzner, a psycho-oncologist and digitalization expert. Also on board the interdisciplinary project team are Martina Löwe (CEO of the Austrian Cancer Society), Beate Hennenberg (music educator at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna), and Daniela Weber (nutritionist at the University Hospital of the Salzburg University Medical Center). The LifeBoost project will run for three years.

Cancer Mission Lab Program

The Cancer Mission Lab call for proposals from the LBG’s OIS Center anchors the EU mission “Defeat Cancer” in Austria and supports collaborative projects in the areas of primary and secondary prevention, as well as in health care and patient outcome research. Within the framework of the LBG Cancer Mission Lab, €1.5 million is available to fund two to four projects in which scientific actors collaborate with individuals and institutions from other sectors of society to develop innovative solutions.

These interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary collaborative projects combine research knowledge with real-life experience and practical knowledge, thus making a significant contribution to achieving the EU mission objectives.