The OECI Network

Presentation of the Centre

The Léon Bérard Centre (CLB) is one of the 18 French Cancer Centers of the Unicancer group. It is a comprehensive cancer Center and a University Hospital involved in screening and care entirely dedicated to cancer, with three overarching aims: care, research and teaching, and the mission to offer the best quality of care to cancer patients. In 2023, the teams of the CLB treated more than 42 000 patients, mainly from the Auvergne Rhône-Alpes region, but also from other areas of France, from French overseas territory and from abroad. The CLB is a reference and innovation center for frequent and rare cancers and has been selected as the coordinating center for the national network of reference centers for sarcomas and rare ovarian cancers.

Main research activities (highlighting any advancements in patient care)

Over 600 full-time researchers are working side-by-side with the medical teams and the patients to facilitate ground-breaking scientific discoveries and their applications in novel treatments.

Core Facilities (clinical or research)

Recognized as a cancer referral and treatment facility, the CLB offers a comprehensive range of care by pooling the required skills that grants patients access to the most innovative technics for diagnosis and treatment on a single site.

• 3 state-of-the art operating units
• 8 accelerators (radiotherapy)
• a Department of Clinical Research certified ISO 9001 intregrating early-stage pediatric and adult trials.
• a Translational Research Department with several shared platforms.

Education

As a University Hospital, teaching is one of its principal missions; the CLB is recognized as a Training Institute that offers training in more than twenty areas to health professionals in the field of oncology, every year.

Presentation of the Centre

Institut Paoli-Calmettes (IPC) is one of the largest university-affiliated cancer centers in France. Its priorities are the diagnosis and treatment of adult cancers, prevention, education, and basic, translational and clinical research.
IPC is involved in the management of more than 10 000 new cases of cancer each year. With 2054 staff-members, including 431 physicians and more than 300 scientists, and an annual budget of ~350 million Euros.

Main research activities

IPC carries out an integrated research program encompassing basic science, translational, clinical and socio-medical research. It hosts two research centers, the Center for Cancer Research of Marseille for biological research, and the Cancer, Biomedicine and Society team for socio medical research. Our main research programs focus on breast cancer, hematologic malignancies and pancreatic cancer.

Core facilities

IPC hosts 17 state-of-the-art technological and clinical platforms including a biobank, a department of clinical research and innovation, a data management center, a data factory, an early phase trial unit, and platforms for preclinical assays, experimental pathology, immunomonitoring, oncogenomics, proteomics, bioinformatics, drug discovery, chemo-biology and cell imaging.

Education

IPC is committed to the education and training. IPC is affiliated to the University of Aix-Marseille and runs 4 Master programs and 4 University diplomas in which 420 students were enrolled in 2023.

Presentation of the Centre

Institut Universitaire du Cancer Toulouse – Oncopole combines a centenary affiliated cancer centers in France, Oncopole Claudius Regaud, and Toulouse University Hospital oncology teams. It is strategically and physically linked to CRCT (Toulouse Cancer Research Center). This Comprehensive Cancer Center treats cancer patients, develops basic, transfer and clinical research and provides teaching. Opened 10 years ago in 2014, IUCT-Oncopole is involved in 11 113 new cases of cancer each year management. 2 175 staff-members including  191 physicians and  147 researchers are devoted to therapeutic innovation. The proximity and the pooling of platforms foster the care/research continuum

Main research activities

The CRCT (INSERM, CNRS and University) integrates research programs in 4 different fields: Cell Signaling & DNA Damage Response, RNA & Cancer, Microenvironment & Metabolism, Onco-Immunology. Its purpose is to solve problems and making discoveries through basic science that can lead to the development of anticancer agents and treatments.

Core Facilities

The innovative techniques for diagnosis and treatment at the service of patients for a global management:

• Medical oncology : 105 beds & places, oncogenetic service, MDT meetings, supportive care (therapeutic educational program, palliative care…).
• Clinical Trials: INCa-certified early phase centre by the French Cancer Institute, certified ISO 9001:2015, conducting phase I trials (part of the leading 3 national centers).
• Surgery: 65 beds & places,7 operating rooms, 50% of outpatient care for senology ; telerobotic, local cryotherapy (urology), per operative radiotherapy...
• Hematology and Internal Medicine: 100 beds & places, 150 clinical trials in progress.
• Nuclear medicine & Imaging: 18 beds & places, PET Scan, MRI, gamma cameras, 3D imaging.
• Radiotherapy: 7 accelerators (including tomotherapy), innovative techniques.
• Resuscitation unit: 12 beds
• Anatomopathology: telepathology, liquid and solid tumors, 1 000 exams/week, 2 special rooms for analyzing surgery samples quickly.
• Pharmacy:  125 000 chemotherapies/year, radiopharmacy, certified ISO 9001:2015

Education

Major changes in the practice of oncology must be taken into account and anticipated in training and teaching. This center of convergence for all disciplines represents an ideal forum for initial and continued training across the entire oncology fields.

Description of the Centre and History

The Institute comprises three University hospitals in central-west Paris: European Georges Pompidou, Cochin, and Necker-Enfants Malades. Partnered with Université Paris Cité, they excel in oncology, delivering high-quality cancer care, research, and education. Annually, it treats 8,000 new cancer patients and employ 2,500 staff, including 220 physicians & 350 researchers.

Main Research Activities

The Institute’s research is recognized as a cancer integrated research site (SIRIC CARPEM) by the French National Cancer Institute. Collaborating with 22 research teams from Université Paris Cité and 12 clinical teams, the Institute focuses on identifying biomarkers for precision medicine, integrating “omics” with immunology to tackle 21st-century oncology challenges. In 2023, the Institute published 466 papers in peer-reviewed journals (23% with an IF>10).

Core Facilities

Supported by outstanding hospital facilities (24 operating rooms, surgical robots, PET scans, MRIs), the Institute also offers advanced radiotherapy techniques, including conformal radiotherapy and intensity-modulated radiotherapy. The clinical research is robust, with 198 clinical trials initiated in 2023 and an early phase trials center accredited by the French National Cancer Institute. High-level technical research platforms in genomic, metabolism, proteomic, spatialomic, and AI/bioinformatic are available.

Education

The Institute trains over 240 medical students and 60 PhD candidates in oncology annually, with 115 university professors and lecturers involved in their education. Members have access to more than 100 oncology seminaries each year.

Presentation of the Centre

The Montpellier Cancer Institute (ICM, Montpellier, France), created in 1923 by a French authorities’ ordinance and member of the UNICANCER, has four overarching aims: patients' care, research, prevention and teaching. Facing more than 17,000 new cancer cases in the East Occitanie every year, the Institute has developed a medical and scientific strategy, with a national and international visibility, focusing on a personalized and innovative global patient management (medical, psychological and social) from cancer prevention to post-treatment follow-up. Over the years, the ICM rose at the forefront of the top-performing Comprehensive Cancer Centres for clinical, fundamental and translational research in France.

Main research activities

Research focused on the patient, spanning from fundamental biology to clinical applications, is a major founding mission of the Institute and its organized in six areas: prevention, fundamental, translational, clinical and methodological research, and human and social sciences. Over 250 researchers are working side-by-side, and with the medical teams, to progress in the fight against cancer. ICM obtained the SIRIC label (Integrated Cancer Research Center) in 2022 for the third time, from the National Cancer Institute (INCa).

Core Facilities

ICM doctors and researchers have access to state-of-the-art core facilities for the benefit of our patients. These include 1 MRIDianLinac, 6 Linear Accelerators, 9 operating rooms, 2 DaVinci surgical robot systems, 1 PET Scan, 2 MRI, 6 technical platforms (1 CyTOF, 1 Protein mass spectrometry …).

Education

Education is strongly rooted in the ICM culture and its medical/paramedical teams are actively involved in university teaching activities as well as in paramedical training courses. In 2016, the ICM has opened the “Montpellier Cancer School” to offer a variety of training opportunities in cancer-related disciplines to health-care providers and scientists.

Presentation of the Institute and history

The Cancer Institute AP-HP. Nord – Université Paris Cité is a joint venture between 7 University hospitals of Université Paris Cité, all located in the north of Great Paris area: Saint-Louis, Bichat, Beaujon, Robert-Debré, Lariboisière, Louis-Mourier and Bretonneau. They gathered their forces in all oncology fields, developing reference activities in bone marrow transplantation, cell-therapies (CAR-T) and early phase clinical trials, to provide high-level cancer care and research, as a heritage of Nobel Prize winner Prof. Jean Dausset, the discoverer of the Major Histocompatibility Complex.

Main research activities

The Cancer Institute AP-HP. Nord – Université Paris Cité gathers 13 basic research teams and 25 clinical teams participating to a rich translational and basic science research activity in oncology, dedicated to hematological malignancies, cell therapy (Saint-Louis Research Institute), and solid cancers (Research Center on Inflammation), with the rise of targeted therapies and immunotherapy, based on the use of genomics biomarkers, cell biology platforms, bio-banking, and innovative imaging techniques. Moreover, our research activity builds on the strengths of the recently granted SIRIC InsiTu, SIRIC Paris Kids Cancer and IHU THEMA-2.

Core facilities

The Cancer Institute AP-HP. Nord – Université Paris Cité relies on outstanding facilities including 94 operating rooms - including 5 surgical ambulatory rooms, 2 PET- CT, 2 PET- SCAN, 1 PET-MRI, 11 MRI, 8 gama-cameras of which 2 coupled with CT-scan, 14 scanners, 7 bronchial and digestive endoscopy wards, 7 surgical robots. The radiotherapy department covers most of the modern radiotherapy techniques. The Meary cell-therapy Center at Saint-Louis Hospital is the most important facility in France for manufacturing CART-cells, while bone marrow transplantation activity is the greatest in Paris area, and beyond, in France.

Education

The Medicine Education and Research Unit, Faculty of Health of Université Paris Cité makes transformation and educational innovation its priority at all stages of training. Several PhD programs in cancer are coordinated by the Université Paris Cité hospitals and basic science research units.

Institute’s presentation:

Professor Oscar Lambret found one of the first cancer department in the Saint-Sauveur Hospital in 1930 in Lille and the Oscar Lambret Center was found twenty five years later in 1955. It is a nonprofit institution collaborating with the different actors such as the French public healthcare system and especially the Lille University hospital Center. It is fully dedicated to oncology including the following practices: chemotherapy, radiotherapy, brachytherapy, supportive care and surgery.

Main research activities:

Clinical research is provided by the DRCI (Research and innovation direction) which coordinates clinical trials since 2016. Clinical research policy of Oscar Lambret Center is to give access to the patients to therapeutic innovations and contribute to clinical research developed under the consortium ONCOLille. DCRI has been certified ISO9001 : 2015. This international standard for quality attests the high degree of professionalism, the proper organisation and expertise of our team. In collaboration with the Lille university hospital and Alliance Cancer, DRCI was accredited by the INca and thus obtained the CLIP quality labeling in 2014 permitting the center to conduct early phase clinical trials in adults and children (first in man). The CLIP labelling has been reobtained by the DRCI in 2019 (until 2024), which recognizes our expertise in clinical research in oncology both in adults and children.

Core Facilities

• 9 radiotherapy (latest generation equipments)
• 2 gamma cameras
• 1 PET scan
• 1 3T.MRI and 1 1,5T.MRI
• 2 CT-scans
• 227 beds and places
  • 144 beds: 82 in medicine, 44 in surgery, 10 in intensive care unit, 8 radio protected rooms
  • 83 places: 40 for chemotherapy; 11 for ambulatory surgery; 8 for paediatric ambulatory: 5 for C2S; 14 for DRCI; 1 for nuclear medicine; 4 for venous access and endoscopic exploration unit
• 7 operating theatres

Education

The Oscar Lambret center plays an active role in the training of future professionals carrying out its teaching and research mission. It offers them a wide range of undergraduate and post-graduate education to train the specialists of tomorrow.

The Oscar Lambret training institute (IFOL) permits professionals in the region and beyond to benefit from a proper professional training. More than one throusand people every day are present in the center to be trained.

Description of the Centre

The Bergonié Institute (IB) is the Comprehensive Cancer Center (CCC) of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, one of the 19 french CCC which belong to UNICANCER network. Together with our partner Bordeaux University Hospital Centre (CHU), we are the regional reference center for oncology in Nouvelle-Aquitaine. IB is a non-profit private hospital dedicated to public service which contributes to medical progress and international influence of research in the prevention, detection and treatment of cancer.

Main research activities

The research of IB is structured around labeled structures that it hosts or with which it is associated. These structures cover the main areas of research in oncology, basic, technological, clinical, translational research, in epidemiology and public health and in human and social sciences. The offer of early access to new targeted molecules for patients (early phase trials within the framework of the Labeled Center INCa of Early Phases (CLIPP)) is a major focus for the Institute.

Core Facilities

More than a thousand employees, including more than a hundred physicians, ensure various missions such as patient care, research and oncology education. On a single site, the IB offers dedicated inpatient and outpatient cancer treatment including radiotherapy and chemotherapy as well as a number of related support services.

Education

All the medical, paramedical, administrative and logistical sectors of the Institute participate in training actions oriented around oncology. In initial training, the Institute welcomes nursing students, caregivers and electroradiology technicians. The Institute also offers a continuing education program including supportive oncological care, technical care and specific oncology treatments.

Presentation of the Centre

The Institut de Cancérologie de Lorraine, the first dedicated cancer treatment centre in Nancy, was created in 1924 with the acquisition of a Radium source in a surgical department. A group of pathologists, radiologists and surgeons was created then developed and became one of the French Regional Cancer Center in 1946. In 1976, a new hospital was built exclusively dedicated to cancer care which now includes 99 beds and 56 places and technical platforms on a surface of 30 000 square meters. The Institut de Cancérologie de Lorraine is a French Comprehensive Cancer Centre (FCCC), a non-profit health care institution, member of the UNICANCER Group. It houses all the human and technological means involved in the treatment, education and research in oncology.

Main research activities

Research is focused on clinical research, from phase I to III academic and industrial trials with 1120 studies producing 100 publications in 2023. Breast and digestive (colorectal and pancreatic) international publications are produced. for diagnostic and adaptation of the treatments. Translational research is developed by the Unit of Tumor Biology innovations with a special focus on liquid biopsies wich can improve diagnosis and treatments

Core Facilities

All techniques of diagnosis and treatment are available:

• The department of Radiotherapy is equipped with 6 linacs (35.000 fractions) including a Cyberknife and HDR-BT ans prostate seed implant facilities
• The department of Medical oncology delivers 25.000 cancer treatments, accompagned by a supportive care unit.
• The department of Surgery ( all except children and neurology) treats 3500 patients and has access
• Pathology, molecular biology, oncogenetic
• Imaging (except nuclear medicine in convention with university hospital)…

Education

Initial education is performed by professors, physicians and nurses, in medicine school, nurses schools and technicians of radiology. An e-learning school is developed as well as the participation to the virtual hospital program of the regional university of Lorraine. Over all, more then 4000 hours are dedicated for teaching courses.