NEWS With support from Cancerfonden, the Swedish Cancer Society, Umeå University will start a new cancer research school in the spring of 2025. The programme, which is unique in Sweden, is aimed at doctoral students throughout the country.
The Cancer Research School - Life course health research on cancer is the name of the new programme, which will be given part-time, spread over three semesters. Since the Research School is aimed at PhD students throughout Sweden, teaching is mainly done remotely with three physical meetings in Umeå. The idea of the arrangement is that the students should be able to work on their dissertations or other projects in parallel.
The Cancer Research School will have a strong profile towards the subject of molecular epidemiology, where biomarkers in blood or tumours are investigated to understand the causes of cancer. Registry based research and the ethics surrounding biobank research will also be covered.
"Molecular epidemiology is a fast developing area where there is a need for a cohesive education so that doctoral students can deepen their knowledge, making us even better at treating and fighting cancer in the long run," says Sophia Harlid, cancer researcher at Umeå University and one of the organizers behind the cancer research school.
The Cancer Research School benefits from the extensive work with the collection of samples that has taken place within the framework of the Västerbotten Intervention Programme and the PREDICT research project at Umeå University. This has resulted in a unique biobank where researchers can search for biomarkers and genetic variations among tens of thousands of samples, many collected long before cancer diagnosis.
"With the new cancer research school, young researchers will have a platform to be able to use the unique resources we have with the biobanks in Västerbotten," says Beatrice Melin, Professor of Oncology at Umeå University and responsible for the PREDICT study.
Participants in the Cancer Research School will receive individual mentoring and also have the opportunity to write a scientific article during their time in the Research School. The Research School arranges accommodation for long distance travellers during the meetings in Umeå. Applications for the Cancer Research School will open in the autumn of 2024.
