The panel included three in-house specialists: immunologist Thiago Carvalho and oncologists Fátima Cardoso, head of the Breast Unit at the Champalimaud Clinical Centre, and Cristina João, a haematologist in the Haemato-Oncology Unit who also heads the Myeloma and Lymphoma Research Lab at Champalimaud Research.

Cancer researcher Rita Fior uses zebrafish to study human cancer. Though this may seem like an unlikely match, her work shows great promise with forthcoming applications in personalised medicine. 

The basic principle of Fior's approach relies on transplanting human cancer cells into dozens of zebrafish larvae. The fish then serve as "living test tubes" where various treatments, such as different chemotherapy drugs, can be tested to reveal which works best. The assay is rapid, producing an answer within four short days.

Um ano após o início da Pandemia de COVID-19, a doença continua a ter um forte impacto na vida das pessoas, nomeadamente naqueles que manifestam maior risco e suscetibilidade a doenças graves, por apresentarem comorbidades, como é o caso dos doentes oncológicos.

The INPDP provides students with an integrative, state-of-the-art education in either Neuroscience or Physiology & Cancer. Top evaluated candidates will receive full financial support to participate in classes and conduct research for 5 years with possible extensions.

Studies have suggested for years that dogs are masters at detecting disease thanks to their exceptional sense of smell. Experts agree that their success most probably lies in their ability to sniff out so-called volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, in the air people exhale. In the last few years, more than 1,000 VOCs have been identified in human breath, and scientists are now seeking to determine which ones could be relevant cancer biomarkers.

Dr.

Today, the growing consensus among experts is that surgery should no longer be the only therapeutic option in rectal cancer treatment. A non-invasive approach, the Watch-and-Wait protocol – which drastically reduces the toll of the disease on patients’ quality of life – has increasingly shown promising results for the treatment of such tumours. A new study now explores the next logical step: whether these patients should be submitted for life or just for a certain period to the stringent follow-up required by the protocol.

Aspiring to move beyond the “one-sentence” headline and get into the nitty gritty of the scientific process, CCU's Communication, Outreach and Events Team has created an animated science collection called "Inside the Unknown".

The collection kicks off with a selection of four projects, presenting studies from the three departments of Champalimaud Research. Mirroring the scientific work within, this collection will continue to evolve and grow over time. 

Welcome to your journey Inside the Unknown.