New Swiss Cancer Research Foundation grant to advance pancreatic cancer immunotherapy

We are pleased to announce that Prof. Christian Stockmann has been awarded a prestigious research grant from the Swiss Cancer Research Foundation for his project "Harnessing the coevolution of the immunopeptidome of tumor cells and stromal fibroblasts in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma " The project has been selected for funding through the foundation's competitive research program and will be carried out over the next three years.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma remains one of the deadliest forms of cancer due to limited treatment options. Prof. Stockmann's project aims to better understand how tumor cells and the surrounding stromal fibroblasts contribute to disease progression by investigating the immunopeptidome—the repertoire of peptides presented to the immune system—of each cell type separately. By integrating immunopeptidome data from mouse models and human pancreatic cancer samples, the researchers aim to uncover shared changes that occur in both, tumor cells and stromal fibroblasts, during cancer development, identifying common markers that could be exploited by future therapies targeting both cell populations simultaneously.

The project combines fundamental research with a clear translational perspective and has the potential to open new avenues for the development of more effective treatment strategies for pancreatic cancer.

We warmly congratulate Prof. Christian Stockmann and his team on this important achievement and wish them every success with the project.