NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ONCOLOGY

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES

Research and development

International Relations

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

For over half a century, the National Institute of Oncology has been the center of epidemiological, organizational, methodological, therapeutic, research and educational development of Hungarian oncology. It is comparable with any national oncology institute in any country, with the only compassive cancer center in Hungary and the surrounding countries, with excellent international recognition and a patient satisfaction rate above 95%. The Institute's secret is the professional excellence and human standing of its employees.

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS DEPARTMENT

The International Relations Department participates in various activities conducted at the National Institute of Oncology (NIO) including coordination of EU projects under the leadership of Prof. Dr. Csaba Polgár, Director General; management of collaboration with international organizations; and coordination of bilateral cooperation with partner organizations. The Institute has a wide array of international collaborations on five continents and is a member of the largest European and international cancer societies. We continue to monitor calls for grant proposals and also make significant contribution to drafting the applications. Other activities of the department include translation of various documents on an institutional level and making travel arrangements for our colleagues traveling abroad.

Prof. Péter Nagy

Scientific Director

Edit Marosi

Head of Department

Contact

The International Relations Department is located in Building 16 in rooms 109 and 110. Phone: +36-1-224-8600

Extensions:

Prof. Péter NAGY: 2170
Edit MAROSI: 1524 or: +36-1-224-8766
Míra BALKAY: 1554
Réka BÁLINT: 2119
Réka FELHŐ: 1110
Beáta UNGOR: 3794
E-mail: nko@oncol.hu

ONGOING EU PROJECTS

INNOVATIVE PARTNERSHIP FOR ACTION AGAINST CANCER (iPAAC) (2018-2021)

The Innovative Partnership for Action Against Cancer Joint Action (iPAAC JA) brings together 44 partners (Competent Authorities and Affiliated Entities) from 24 European countries and will be coordinated by the National Institute of Public Health, Slovenia (NIJZ).

iPAAC objectives

The general objective of the iPAAC Joint Action (JA) is to develop innovative approaches to advances in cancer control. The innovation that will be covered within the JA consists of further development of cancer prevention, comprehensive approaches to the use of genomics in cancer control, enhancing cancer information and registries, improvements and challenges in cancer care, anticipation of challenges with innovative cancer treatments and governance of integrated cancer control, including a new analysis of national cancer control plans.

Target groups

The primary target group of the iPAAC Joint Action will be EU-level policymakers and decision makers at national, regional and local level. All of the innovative actions covered by the JA work packages will be assessed on the basis of sustainability and integration into national policies. The key focus of the Joint Action will therefore be on implementation, as reflected in the key deliverable, i.e. the Roadmap on Implementation and Sustainability of Cancer Control Actions, which will support Member States in the implementation of iPAAC and CANCON recommendations.

iPAAC outcomes

1. Support for Member States in implementing recommendations from the CANCON Joint Action at national, regional and local levels. The Roadmap will focus on a number of intersecting issues, which occur in different topics represented by both previous CANCON Work Packages and current iPAAC Work Packages. The Roadmap will thus provide an integrated summarised strategic tool on several important aspects in cancer control, which are of particular relevance to policymakers.

2. Reinforcing of cancer prevention through further developing current recommendations for quality cancer screening and a sound assessment of new potential that might exist, through evaluating harms and benefits of population-based programmes. With focus on inequalities, further strengthening the European Code Against Cancer by policy implementation. Assessment of how the activities in the field of genomics continuously contribute to cancer control.

3. Providing better efficacy for dealing with neglected cancers through development of new key indicators to assess clinical patient pathways and health care related costs of cancer and its interventions, particularly in the case of pancreatic cancer.

4. Supporting the introduction of immunotherapies into clinical practice through a comprehensive assessment of their main challenges.

5. Evaluation of cancer care in European countries through an assessment of quality indicators.

6. Support for policymakers in the field of governance, including pilot comprehensive cancer care networks and an updated analysis of national cancer control programmes in the EU.

7. Support evidence-based cancer care by enhancing population-based information systems. Piloting the integration of registries with electronic health and administrative data to assess quality of care, costs and outcomes. Promoting the use of informative indicators on cancer prevalence at EU level.

The iPAAC Joint Action has received funding from the European Union’s Third Health Programme (2014–2020). It has officially started on 1 April 2018 and it will last for three years. More information about the iPAAC Joint Action can be obtained by visiting the official website (www.ipaac.eu) or by contacting the Coordination Team: ipaac@nijz.si

CHRODIS PLUS JOINT ACTION – IMPLEMENTING GOOD PRACTICES FOR CHRONIC DISEASES (2017-2020)

CHRODIS PLUS is a three-year initiative (2017-2020) led by the Institute of Health Carlos III from Spain and is being funded by the European Commission and the participating parties.

Joint Actions involve on average 25 partners, depending on the scope of the action. This joint action involves representatives of the 42 participant institutions – from 18 EU countries plus Norway, Serbia and Iceland. Europe is paying a heavy price for chronic diseases: it has been estimated that chronic diseases cost EU economies 115 billion € or 0.8% of GDP annually. Approximately 70% to 80% of health care budgets across the EU are spent on treating chronic diseases. CHRODIS PLUS during its 36 months of operation will contribute to the reduction of this burden by promoting the implementation of policies and practices with demonstrated success.

Reducing the burden of chronic diseases like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer and mental disorders is a priority of EU Member States and at the EU Policy level, since they affect 8 out of 10 people aged over 65 in Europe. There is great potential to reduce the burden of chronic disease by making better use of this knowledge.

Our Institute is an active part in the work packages WP2 (Dissemination) and WP5 (Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, HPDP) of this project which was landed on 1 September 2017 with an extent of 36 months. The main objectives of the latter work package are:
• To improve countries’ approach to promoting health & preventing chronic diseases through further analysis of the health promotion & disease prevention (HPDP) landscape in Europe with a specific focus on innovative approaches
• To generate learning and improve the effectiveness of HPDP through supporting small scale pilots, the scaling up and/or transfer of good practices through strengthening their adaptation and implementation
• To address and improve the intersectoral collaboration between health promotion and the broader healthcare system

INTENT – USING GUIDELINES AND BENCHMARKING TO TRIGGER SOCIAL ENTREPERNEURSHIP SOLUTIONS TOWARDS BETTER PATIENT-CENTRED CANCER CARE IN CENTRAL EUROPE (2017-2020)

The INTENT project aims to find solutions for innovative patient-centered cancer care. It targets and involves various types of actors: cancer care providers, patients and policy makers. The aim is to work with these groups to create a better understanding of how to interpret the patient-centered approach and identify ways for improving cancer care in central Europe. Beyond the activities leading to an innovative cancer care model, the project will issue policy recommendations, provide an online benchmarking tool, identify priorities for improving existing systems on local level and create a virtual know-how centre.

The centre will collect and provide good practices, benchmarking results and a pool of innovative ideas to all interested users. Tools and knowledge provided by INTENT will improve quality in cancer care and mobilise health care managers, clinicians and other staff involved. It calls for positive change and thus unlocks the innovation potential of public services.

The duration of the INTENT project is between 01.07.2017 and 06.30.2020. This project is supported by the Interreg CENTRAL EUROPE Programme funded under the European Regional Development Fund. The project has 9 partners from 4 central European countries working on 4 thematic work packages. The National Institute of Oncology in Budapest is the leader of WP3 focusing on ‘Piloting in Central European Regions’.

The INTENT poster can be downloaded HERE

The INTENT leaflet can be downloaded HERE

Call of External Evaluator

JOINT ACTION ON RARE CANCERS (JARC) (2016-2019)

The JARC project (Joint Action on Rare Cancers) was launched in October 2016. The collaboration is aimed to integrate and maximize efforts of the European Union (EU) Commission, EU Member States and all stakeholders to advance quality of care and research on rare cancers. There are 34 Associated Partners and 23 Collaborating Partners from 18 Member States involved in the project. By working together the partners wish to achieve the following:

• to prioritize rare cancers in the agenda of the EU and Member States, with a view to national cancer plans and quality of healthcare, harmonization of clinical practices, innovation through promotion of clinical and translational research;
• to facilitate the establishment of timely and correct diagnosis and to decrease health inequalities across EU countries;
• • to develop innovative and shared solutions in the areas of quality of care, research education and state of the art definition on prevention, diagnosis and treatment of rare cancers. These solutions are to be implemented through the future ERNs on rare cancers (European Reference Networks).

The project is coordinated by the Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori located in Milan. The duration of the project is 36 months, its expected time of completion is the end of September 2019. Out of the 10 work packages our Institute participates in the following two: WP5 (Assuring Quality of Care) and WP6 (Clinical Practice Guidelines). The objective of WP5 is to design healthcare quality assurance systems and processes that will be added to the future ERNs. The objective of WP6 is to assess the contents of existing clinical practice guidelines on rare cancers and to provide recommendations on how to ensure the best production, dissemination and implementation of these clinical practice guidelines at a local level, as well as within the future ERNs.

ERN EURACAN – EUROPEAN REFERENCE NETWORKS – RARE ADULT SOLID CANCERS (2017-2021)

The ERN EURACAN project is one of the 24 virtual networks (ERNs – European Reference Networks) that aims to tackle complex or rare diseases and conditions that require highly specialised treatment and a concentration of knowledge and resources.

The EURACAN project seeks to improve the quality of care for all European citizens affected by rare cancers. To this end ERN EURACAN is sharing best practice tools and establishing reference centres for rare cancers. It is also establishing regularly updated diagnostic and therapeutic clinical practice guidelines. The project covers all rare adult solid tumour cancers grouping them into 10 domains.

Another aim of the project is to reach all EU countries within 5 years and develop a referral system to ensure at least 75 % of patients are treated in a EURACAN centre.

Duration:5 years (1st period, starting day: 10/03/2017)
Network Coordinator: Prof. Jean-Yves Blay; Centre Léon Bérard, Lyon, France
Members: 66 Health Care Providers in 17 European countries, and 22 Associate Partners. The NIO is the only Hungarian member.

TRANSCAN-2 – ALIGNING NATIONAL/REGIONAL TRANSLATIONAL CANCER RESEARCH PROGRAMMES AND ACTIVITIES (2015-2019)

Starting from 2015, TRANSCAN-2 will be funded under the Horizon 2020 initiative and its activities and aims will be similar to that of TRANSCAN. The project will last for 60 months. The aim of the project is to raise and distribute funds to support translational cancer research activities of several research consortiums. The partner countries’ ministries, funding agencies, and research councils contributed to the funds distributed for translational cancer research. TRANSCAN-2 is composed of 28 partner institutions representing 19 European countries.

Our Institute participates in WP4 (Strategy: Network and Scientific Research Priorities).

PAST EU PROJECTS

BENCHCAN – BENCHMARKING IN CANCER CARE (2013-2016)

The general objective of the BenchCan project was to benchmark comprehensive cancer care and yielded best practice examples in a way that contributes to improving the quality of interdisciplinary patient treatment. It aimed to increase the quality of treatment of patients with malignant diseases at the EU level.

The project had 7 seven core partners as well as the ECPC (European Cancer Patient Coalition). Furthermore, 9 European cancer centres also participated as pilot sites. The National Institute of Oncology was the leader of WP5 (Benchmark tools piloting; coordinator assigned by NIO: Prof. Péter Nagy) and also contributed to the project by participating as a pilot site. The project started on April 1, 2013 and lasted for 36 months with a budget of 848,500 euros. The project was co-funded by the Health Programme of the European Union and OECI acted as the project coordinator.

EUROCANPLATFORM – RESEARCH CONSORTIUM (2011-2015)

The EurocanPlatform project was one of the largest European cancer research consortiums. The EC funded project brought together 28 European cancer institutions and organisations; NIO being the only partner from the Central and Eastern European region. The overarching aim of the project was to improve outcomes for cancer patients and reduce mortality. This was achieved by focusing on three key areas of research: prevention, early detection and improved treatments. EurocanPlatform was building the necessary resources and know-how to improve cancer care from bench to bedside: basic research, early and late translational research, clinical research, epidemiological research, implementation in care and population based outcome research. The National Institute of Oncology participated in the following Work Packages: WP3 (Early detection/Biomarker discovery), WP8 (Technology Resources), WP10 (Biobanking), WP11 (Clinical Epidemiology), and WP13 (Education and Training). The project took off on January 1, 2011 and lasted for 60 months with a total budget close to 12 million euros. The coordination was managed by the Swedish Karolinska Institutet.

EUROPEAN PARTNERSHIP ACTION AGAINST CANCER (EPAAC) (2009-2012)

The EU financed programme was launched in 2009 and ended in 2012. It focused on five vertical and two horizontal topics related to cancer prevention and control. Among the vertical topics our Institute participated in WP6, which focused on screening and early detection. Among the horizontal topics we joined the harmonization of the National Cancer Control Programmes. Given the successful outcomes of the project, the EU decided to continue the program in 2014. The findings of the first program were published under the title: Boosting Innovation and Cooperation in European Cancer Control - Key Findings from the European Partnership for Action Against Cancer; Edited by Jose M. Martin-Moreno, Tit Albreht, Sandra Radoš Krnel.

COOPERATION WITH INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATION

Organisation of European Cancer Institutes (OECI)

The OECI was founded in Vienna in 1979 and our Institute is one of its founding members. The OECI is a non-government, non-profit organization with a membership of 82 associated European Cancer Centres. The primary objectives of the organization are to improve communication and increase collaborative activities among European cancer institutes as well as to harmonise oncology care in Europe. In 2013, our Institute was accredited as Comprehensive Cancer Centre (CCC) by OECI, and we are the only OECI accredited CCC in Central and Eastern Europe. The successful renewal of the accreditation took place in 2018, our Institute retained its CCC certification, which is valid until 2023.

Our Institute participates in all OECI working groups (Accreditation, Education, Guideline, Pathobiology and R&D). In 2010, we hosted the OECI general assembly in Budapest. In addition, Dr. József Lövey, our Institute’s Clinical Director is a member of the OECI Board, while Prof. Péter Nagy, Scientific Director is a member of the OECI Accreditation & Designation Board. Both of them take part in OECI’s European accreditation activities as accreditors.

Union for International Cancer Control (UICC)

There is an ongoing collaboration with the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) that includes the exchange of professional materials, professional visits, continuing education and scholarship opportunities. NIO also actively participated in UICC’s anti-smoking campaign.

In 1985, Prof. Dr. Sándor Eckhardt, former Director General of NIO, was elected as UICC President and the UICC World Cancer Congress in 1986 was organized in Budapest.

European Association for Cancer Research (EACR)

Our Institute actively contributes to the work of the European Association for Cancer Research (EACR). Between 2000 and 2002 the organization’s President was Prof. Edit Oláh, the former Head of the Molecular Genetics Department. The 19th (biannual) meeting of EACR was held in Budapest on June 1−4, 2006. Currently Prof. Péter Nagy—delegated by Prof. Dr. Miklós Kásler, former Director General— is a member of the EACR Scientific Council.

International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC)

Our Institute has a close professional relationship with the Lyon-based organization and Prof. Dr. Miklós Kásler, former Director General regularly attended the IARC meetings.

International Prevention Research Institute (IPRI)

The Director General of the National Institute of Oncology participates in the National Cancer Institute Directors’ annual meeting. In addition, since 2013 Professor Dr. Miklós Kásler, former Director General contributes to the scientific work of the International Prevention Research Institute as a Senior Research Fellow.

A formal agreement between our Institutes was signed on 14th December 2016, which outlined the basis for cooperation in cancer prevention thus decreasing its burden imposed on public health systems.

The President of the International Prevention Research Institute, Prof. Dr. Peter Boyle is a member of our Institute’s International Scientific Advisory Board.

WHO

The collaboration with the World Health Organization goes back to several decades. We participated and continue to participate in various WHO programmes. Programmes our Institute participated in are the “Consultation on strategies to improve and strengthen cancer control programmes in Europe” (Geneva November 25−28, 2003.; and the “Overview of National Cancer Control Programmes” 2004−2005, just to name a few of the most important ones.

European School of Oncology ESO

ESO is an educational and training centre operating in Italy. Our Institute’s staff has been attending numerous ESO courses, both as instructors and as participants.

Bilateral relations

State Budgetary Healthcare Institution «Saint-Petersburg Clinical Scientific and practical center of specialized types of medical care (oncological)», Saint-Petersburg, Russian Federation

A delegation of the St. Petersburg Oncocentre visited our Institute in June 2018, for the purpose of establishing future professional cooperation. The successful initial contact was followed by mutual visits of professionals. A formal agreement between our Institutes was finalized in March 2019 in St. Petersburg.

The State Budgetary Institution of Higher Professional Education «Voronezh State Medical University named after N.N. Burdenko», Voronezh, Russian Federation

The bilateral partnership began in 2014 with the aim of strengthening cooperation between the countries in the field of health and medical education. The renewal of the cooperation agreement took place in February 2019.

Regional budgetary healthcare institution of Sverdlovsk region “Sverdlovsk Regional Oncology Centre”, Yekaterinburg, Russian Federation

A delegation of health professionals visited our Institute in October 2018, to discuss the possible cooperation opportunities with the management of our Institutes. During the meeting the parties agreed to the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding.

State Organisation «Grigoriev Medical Radiology NAMS of Ukraine», Kharkiv, Ukraine

A formal agreement was signed between the National Institute of Oncology and the State Organisation «Grigoriev Medical Radiology NAMS of Ukraine» in June 2018, for a joint non-profit scientific study to be established. The responsible coordinator from our Institute is Dr. Zoltán Novák, MD, Ph.D.; Department Head.

Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran

A cooperation agreement was signed between the National Institute of Oncology and the Ministry of Health and Medical Education of the Islamic Republic of Iran with the aim to strengthen the relationship between the two countries, as well as to establish a professional and scientific cooperation in different areas of cancer prevention.

Oncopathology Research Centre, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran

A cooperation agreement was signed between the National Institute of Oncology and Oncopathology Research Centre, Iran University of Medical Sciences with the aim to strengthen the relationship between the two countries, as well as to establish a technical and scientific cooperation in various areas of cancer research.

National Cancer Institute (NCI) – Vilnius, Lithuania

The bilateral partnership started in 2013 with a professional visit to our Institute by the Lithuanian National Cancer Institute’s senior delegation. The ceremonial signing of the cooperation agreement in the field of cancer treatment, research and education took place in 2014, in Vilnius.

Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum (DKFZ) – Heidelberg, Germany

In 2013, within the framework of the EurocanPlatform project an Agreement for Cooperation was implemented between the German Cancer Research Centre (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum) and NIO that laid the foundation for a long-term epidemiological cooperation. The first “fruit” of this cooperation is a study entitled: “Trends in uptake and utilization of sentinel lymph node dissection among breast cancer patients – an international comparative study among EUROCAN Platform members”. Additional scientific collaborations are in place between DKFZ’s redox biology research unit and our Institute’s Molecular Immunology and Toxicology Department (MITO), which is hallmarked by several joint publications.

University of Medicine and Pharmacy – Tirgu Mureş, Romania

In 2006, the University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Tirgu Mureş (MOGYE) received authorization from the Hungarian Accreditation Committee to establish a PhD programme in the field of medical sciences together with NIO as a co-partner. As a result, the Postgraduate Medical Faculty in Budapest was set up consisting of eight departments led by Prof. Dr. Miklós Kásler. The PhD education has been continuous since 2006, and is open for both Transylvanian and Hungarian colleagues. So far, twenty Hungarian students have earned their PhD in the programme.

Hungarian-Bavarian Intergovernmental Agreement

In 2003, under the Hungarian-Bavarian Intergovernmental Agreement our Institute’s Cancer Registry established contacts, first with the Cancer Registry in Erlangen, then in Munich and Giessen. The collaboration is still ongoing with these centres. The multiple specialist visits and continuous exchange of information between these institutions greatly contributed to the development of our Institute’s Cancer Registry. The last visit took place in 2008, when expert Dr. Imre Boncz travelled to Erlangen. Currently, the collaboration is mainly focused on the exchange of information and documentations.

Liaoning Cancer Hospital – Shenyang, China

Since 2002, within the framework of “Chinese Cooperation Agreement”, our Institute has bilateral relations with the Liaoning Cancer Hospital (Shenyang). The senior level mutual visits and presentations were the first steps of this cooperation. At first, our Institute welcomed the hospital’s top management and laid the foundation of a professional cooperation, which was further developed during our delegation’s visits to China. In 2008 and 2013, we hosted the Chinese delegation, and in 2010 and 2014, the former Director General of our Institute, Prof. Dr. Miklós Kásler and the then Deputy Director, Prof. Dr. Csaba Polgár as well as Prof. Dr. János Fodor Professor Emeritus travelled to our Chinese partners to negotiate an extension for the areas for cooperation. Currently, we are working together mainly in the field of radiation therapy. In addition to the ongoing professional exchanges, we hosted a Chinese PhD student who developed her PhD thesis at our Institute.

Other collaborations

Our Institute is in close cooperation with the National Cancer Institute and the MD Anderson Cancer Center in the United States. NIO also developed joint research projects with various American institutes in the breast and colon cancer domains. We are in close cooperation with the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm (since 2008), primarily in the form of expert visits, exchange of scientific results and participating in meetings. The director of the world-famous Cancer Center of the KI, Professor Dr. Ulrik Ringborg is the member of our Institute’s International Scientific Advisory Board.