The Swiss National Science Foundation and the Federal Council have approved the NCCR Children & Cancer, a long-term collaborative research initiative focused on improving diagnostics and treatment for childhood cancers, which remain a leading cause of disease-related death in children despite their biological complexity. The centre unites children’s hospitals and leading research institutions across Switzerland in a coordinated national effort to bridge basic science and clinical innovation.
At the Department of Quantitative Biomedicine (DQBM) of the University of Zurich, Professors Bjoern Menze and Bernd Bodenmiller will contribute core expertise in biomedical data analysis and AI for clinical decision support in pediatrics and pediatric oncology. As part of the initiative, DQBM will host Switzerland’s first professorship for Biomedical Data Science in Pediatrics / Pediatric Oncology, expanding the department’s role at the intersection of data science, machine learning and child cancer care. The focus will be on advanced data analytics and AI applications that enhance clinical decision making for young patients.
The NCCR Children & Cancer is funded for up to 12 years, aiming to build a national centre of excellence that accelerates precision diagnostics, novel therapies and collaborative innovation in pediatric oncology across Switzerland.