Translational collaborative cancer research between Europe and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC)

Proposals must focus on translational and multidisciplinary research to identify specific patient groups in view of improving one or more of the following aspects: screening, early detection, diagnosis, and/or prognosis.

Proposals must build on the diverse genetic backgrounds, risk factors, cancer incidence[[For instance, cancers proportionally more frequent in the CELAC region include gastric, cervical, gallbladder, childhood leukaemia]], geographical environment, and/or different healthcare models (including social care and volunteers) in European and CELAC countries.

Proposals may integrate molecular, behavioural, nutritional, clinical, social and environmental epidemiology[[including environmental carcinogens, e.g. in homes, occupational, urban and rural settings]] data from cohorts; registries; biobanks; repositories; research infrastructures;

Considerations of effectiveness and potential clinical benefit should be integrated in the proposals where relevant.

Specific population age groups, sex and gender aspects, socio-economic, ethical, ethnic, cultural, lifestyle and behavioural factors and any other non-health related individual attributes should be taken into consideration where relevant.

Due to the specific challenge of this topic, in addition to the minimum number of participants set out in the General Annexes, proposals shall include at least two participants from two different CELAC countries[[CELAC countries: Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela.]].

The Commission considers that proposals requesting a contribution from the EU of between EUR 2 to 4 million would allow this specific challenge to be addressed appropriately. Nonetheless, this does not preclude submission and selection of proposals requesting other amounts.

The world is facing a critical healthcare problem: due to a growing and aging population increasingly exposed to a number of well-known and new risk factors, cancer is becoming one of the most important public health problems worldwide.

In 2012, the incidence of new cancer cases in the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) countries was 1.1 million, with 0.6 million deaths; in Europe the incidence was 3.45 million new cases, with 1.75 million deaths[[http://www.iarc.fr]]. Moreover, about two-thirds of all cancer deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries and incidence and mortality are expected to increase by about 75% in these countries by 2030[[http://www.iarc.fr]].

Current cancer care does not fully reflect ethnic, cultural, environmental and resource differences. In addition, limited research is being conducted on tumours primarily found in CELAC countries.

There is a need to establish evidence obtained through international high-quality translational collaborative research to tailor cancer control to specific patient groups.

The proposals should address one of or combinations of:

• Identify high-risk populations with a view to tailor early detection and diagnosis or to optimise prevention.
• Improve early detection and/or diagnosis and/or prognosis of cancer adapted to specific settings.
• Provide evidence to national programmes and policies focusing on screening, early detection and/or diagnosis and/or prognosis.
• Provide novel opportunities for the development of targeted therapies.
• Contribute to attaining sustainable development goals for non-communicable diseases[[https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg3]]