The OECI Network

Presentation of the Centre

The Vejle Cancer Centre, part of Lillebaelt Hospital, is dedicated to delivering world-class cancer care. Our mission is to provide every cancer patient with personalized, high-quality treatment, integrating the latest advances in research and clinical care to enhance outcomes and quality of life. Recognized by the Region of Southern Denmark as a specialist cancer hospital since 2008, Vejle Cancer Centre is one of Denmark’s premier institutions for cancer diagnosis, treatment, and research. Our centre serves as a national reference point, with a strong commitment to offering equitable access to cutting-edge therapies across a wide range of cancers including colorectal, breast, lung, prostate, hematological, and gynecologic malignancies. At Vejle Cancer Centre, prevention and early detection are cornerstones of our cancer control strategy. Through population-based screening programs and personalized risk assessment tools, we aim to reduce cancer incidence and diagnose cancers at earlier, more treatable stages. We offer a holistic approach to supportive care, addressing the physical, emotional, and psychological needs of patients and their families throughout the cancer journey. Palliative care is integrated early in the treatment pathway to improve the quality of life of patients with advanced disease.

Main research activity

Our research is embedded within every step of patient care, bridging the gap between clinical trials and everyday treatment. With a focus on precision oncology, we ensure that every patient benefits from the latest advancements in personalized medicine. Our multidisciplinary teams conduct translational research, integrating it seamlessly with clinical trials, ensuring that innovative treatments are rapidly implemented to improve patient outcomes.

Core Research Areas:

• Multidisciplinary Care
• Translational Research
• Shared Decision Making
• Population-Based Cohorts
• National and International Collaboration
• Fast-Tracked Research Implementation

Core facilities

Vejle Cancer Centre is equipped with state-of-the-art technology to support minimally invasive surgeries, advanced radiological imaging, and high-precision radiotherapy. Our clinical research unit and high-tech laboratories ensure that we remain at the forefront of cancer research, offering our patients access to the latest therapies and clinical trials.

Education

As an academic partner of the University of Southern Denmark, we are deeply invested in the education and training of the next generation of healthcare professionals. Our commitment to both undergraduate and postgraduate medical education ensures that our staff are well-prepared to lead in the rapidly evolving field of cancer care.

Presentation of AUH

Aarhus University Hospital (AUH) holds ambitions for the highest possible standards in cancer care, and is committed to treatment, education and research with a patient centred approach. AUH is a local hospital covering 350,000+ citizens in the city of Aarhus and a highly specialized hospital for patients in Central Denmark Region with a regional catchment area of 1,4 million inhabitants. AUH employs 10,500 persons across 55 departments and covers all types of cancer treatment. In 2023, AUH had more than 35,500 cancer patients and performed 11,400 cancer procedures.

Main research activity

AUH and Aarhus University (AU) have a broad range of cancer research ranging from basic science to clinical research including intervention trials. AUH and AU have outstanding scientific facilities, an extensive international network and the clinical trial units have more than 50 ongoing cancer trials. In 2023, 697 peer-reviewed cancer articles were published.

Core Facilities

The diagnostic facilities are outstanding and include: seven PET-CT, 1 PET-MRI, 15 MRI, 6 gamma cameras of which 4 are coupled with CT-scan, 16 CT-scans, 3 cyclotrons, several endoscopy wards and 3 surgical robots. AUH covers most of the modern radiotherapy techniques including a national proton therapy centre and several treatments with radionuclide therapy. AUH also houses cancer biobanks, a high-performance computing facility and an extensive next-generation sequencing facility with access to whole-genome sequencing.

Education

AUH highly prioritizes education of health care professionals in collaboration with Aarhus University and VIA University College. The education program covers medical students, PhD students, physicians, nurses and several supporting disciplines.

Presentation of the Centre

The Copenhagen Comprehensive Cancer Center (CCCC) entails the Clinical Departments of On-cology at Rigshospitalet and Herlev-Gentofte Hospital, and serves the local capital community, and the region/country, for specialized functions and cancer treatment in all organ-systems. Organization as Comprehensive Cancer Center strengthens all aspects of cancer treatment fo-cusing on four key areas: Clinical patient services, quality development, education, and research.

Main research and core facilities

Research is a cornerstone of Oncology within the CCCC and occupies a special place of im-portance and priority at both Rigshospitalet and Herlev-Gentofte Hospital. Also, CCCC is proud to perform education and clinical training of students and Ph.D. scholars in collaboration with the University of Copenhagen and the Technical University of Denmark. Rigshospitalet has the largest Oncologic phase 1 facility in Scandinavia, with more than 50 ongo-ing trials for solid and hematological malignancies. Over 600 Whole Genome Sequencing profiles, including bioinformatics, are processed annually. The National Center for Cancer Immune Therapy (CCIT-DK) is based at Herlev- Gentofte Hospital. CCIT-DK performs experimental and clinical projects facilitating fast clinical implementation of new immunotherapies incl. tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) for adoptive T-cell therapy (ACT) in metastatic melanoma. Additional research focus areas in CCCC include personalised medicine, radiotherapy (incl. adap-tive techniques), translational research, PROs, and AI-based Real-World Evidence.

Presentation of the Centre

The Copenhagen Comprehensive Cancer Center (CCCC) entails the Clinical Departments of On-cology at Rigshospitalet and Herlev-Gentofte Hospital, and serves the local capital community, and the region/country, for specialized functions and cancer treatment in all organ-systems. Organization as Comprehensive Cancer Center strengthens all aspects of cancer treatment fo-cusing on four key areas: Clinical patient services, quality development, education, and research.

Main research and core facilities

Research is a cornerstone of Oncology within the CCCC and occupies a special place of im-portance and priority at both Rigshospitalet and Herlev-Gentofte Hospital. Also, CCCC is proud to perform education and clinical training of students and Ph.D. scholars in collaboration with the University of Copenhagen and the Technical University of Denmark. Rigshospitalet has the largest Oncologic phase 1 facility in Scandinavia, with more than 50 ongo-ing trials for solid and hematological malignancies. Over 600 Whole Genome Sequencing profiles, including bioinformatics, are processed annually. The National Center for Cancer Immune Therapy (CCIT-DK) is based at Herlev- Gentofte Hospital. CCIT-DK performs experimental and clinical projects facilitating fast clinical implementation of new immunotherapies incl. tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) for adoptive T-cell therapy (ACT) in metastatic melanoma. Additional research focus areas in CCCC include personalised medicine, radiotherapy (incl. adap-tive techniques), translational research, PROs, and AI-based Real-World Evidence.

Presentation of the Centre

Odense University Hospital (OUH) is one of the five university hospitals in Denmark. OUH offers comprehensive medical care for both children and adults with cancer, guided by the latest medical knowledge and based on the vision of ‘Patient First’. Every year, OUH serves over 1 million patients on an outpatient basis and more than 85,000 patients during hospitalization. In addition to serving as a cancer hospital, OUH also functions as the University Hospital of Southern Denmark across all medical specialities. OUH serves as secondary referral hospital within the region and as tertiary hospital regarding a number of services.

Main Research Activities at OUH

Research at OUH focuses on interdisciplinary collaboration. OUH has had an elite research programme regarding cancer in the elderly (AgeCare) since 2012. The current research strategy is entitled ‘Together we create the patient treatment of the future’ and focuses on research for and together with patients and relatives, evidence-based medicine, excellent research collaboration, a strong research culture and attractive career paths. Overall, OUH has 6 elite centers, 5 centers of excellence and 13 frontline centers. Staffs include 120 professors (36 of them within the field of cancer), 70 adjunct professors and more than 260 PhD students. In 2022, there were published 1916 peer-reviewed journal articles and conference papers. The Department of Oncology is very strong in radiotherapy research, with many active doctors, physicists, nurses and radiotherapists. There are two professors and one emeritus professor in the field, one medical and one new professor in medical physics. In addition, we have a number of associate professors and clinical associate professors in the field. A large number of articles in highly respected journals are published from the department every year. OUH has a strong focus on telemedicine and has a strong tradition in both research and treatment, e.g. home measurements, apps etc. OUH also houses the Centre of Clinical Robotics (CCR), which strengthens the use of robotics for both logistics and treatment and has Denmark's first center for clinical artificial intelligence (CAI-X) in collaboration with the University of Southern Denmark. OUH is a frontrunner in areas such as cryo-freezing treatment of tumors, PET/MR scans and camera endoscopy in population screening for colon cancer.

Core Facilities at OUH

OUH has 10% of the Danish hospital activity and is a university hospital with all specialties. Management is decentralized and with extensive scope for management layers under the executive board. The chief physician and chief nurse make up the joint department management. Function managers are the third and final layer of management in OUH's 52 departments (29 of these departments are working within the cancer field). The hospital has 896 beds and 10,980 employees, of whom approximately 2,000 are doctors and 3,500 are nurses. In the field of cancer, there have been established several multidisciplinary cancer teams, specializing in areas such as gynecology, gastroenterology, urology and pulmonology. The Department of Oncology provides medical treatment and radiotherapy, while surgical treatment takes place in the surgical wards. Advanced surgical techniques, including robotic surgery, have been implemented in the surgical departments. The Department of Oncology at OUH has six standard physical accelerators and an MRI accelerator (MRL). In addition, there is a surface treatment device for the treatment of skin cancer. The department also has a number of medical treatments and many highly specialized areas. We have around 40 medical protocols with the pharmaceutical industry and many investigator-initiated studies. OUH receives patients from the entire Region of Southern Denmark. For some cancers that require highly specialized treatment, we also receive patients from other regions and in some cases from all of Denmark. In collaboration with the Danish Regions and the Danish Health Authority, so-called cancer care pathways have been created for an array of cancer types. OUH follows these programs, which ensures that OUH follows the guidelines for the best treatment. The treatment at the Department of Oncology is of international standard, and the treatment is coordinated with the other oncological departments in Denmark and follows the content of the ‘National Board of Health's cancer care pathways’. OUH also includes various specialized laboratories for clinical genetics, clinical biochemistry, clinical immunology, medical microbiology and clinical pathology. In addition, genetic tests and consultations are offered by the Department of Clinical Genetics.

Education

OUH collaborates with the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Southern Denmark in Odense, which offers both undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. This faculty awards degrees in medicine, nursing, physiotherapy, biomedicine, among others. OUH also collaborates with the Faculty of Health Sciences at University College, which offers bachelor programmes in nursing, Biomedical Laboratory Science, Radiography, Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy. In addition, OUH participates in the ERASMUS programme and educates a number of students each year.