GIMM-CARE: BOOSTING CLINICAL RESEARCH FOR THE BENEFIT OF SOCIETY

Project Information

GIMM-CARE

Grant agreement ID: 101060102

DOI

10.3030/101060102

EC signature date 26 April 2023

Start date 1 May 2023

End date 30 April 2029

Funded under

• Widening participation and spreading excellence

Total cost

€ 15 000 000,00

EU contribution

€ 15 000 000,00

Coordinated by

FUNDACAO GIMM - GULBENKIAN INSTITUTE FOR MOLECULAR MEDICINE
Portugal

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - iMM-CARE (iMM-CARE: BOOSTING CLINICAL RESEARCH FOR THE BENEFIT OF SOCIETY)

Reporting period: 2023-05-01 to 2024-10-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

Note: In October 2024, the Instituto de Medicina Molecular (iMM) underwent a merger to become the Gulbenkian Institute for Molecular Medicine (GIMM).

The time between the emergence of innovations in healthcare and their practical application for the benefit of human health is too long, due to complex and disconnected processes to develop, test and implement novel healthcare solutions, across sectors and with an accumulation of missed opportunities along the way. In a global setting of significant healthcare challenges, our cooperative response to the COVID-19 pandemic made it clear that, together, we can put into practice specific solutions within tangible timeframes. This realization shifted our mindset and shaped our strategic goal – to establish a Centre of Excellence in human-centered clinical and translational research.

GIMM-CARE (“Centre for Action, Research and Expertise in Healthcare”) teams up GIMM with a strategic international partner – the Vall d’Hebron Barcelona Hospital Institute of Research (VHIR) – a world-leading healthcare complex with complementary expertise in clinical trials and training. Building on existent links with the Lisbon Academic Medical Centre (CAML), plus novel cross-sector partnerships, CARE will create the framework and actions to catalyze a continuum across biomedical research, from bench to bedside and back again.

CARE brings together international KOLs from various sectors to help guide our strategy through elaborating disease-specific Missions with citizens’ needs in mind. With Portugal acting as “a lab for the world” we will test solutions that can then be shared and scaled up to other countries with similar needs. Our goal is to tackle specific diseases where science is just one step behind and can offer vital information for a specific part of the solution. Investment will then be funneled to develop the operational setting to scale up rapidly, first as a proof-of-concept and then as part of future national policy guidelines. Alongside, CARE drives the digital transformation of critical clinical research infrastructures, including a Next-generation Biobank and a Clinical Research Hub. CARE is based on cross-disciplinary co-creation opportunities geared towards open innovation, including tailored actions for patients and representatives, ensuring that key end users are empowered to actively participate in the R&I process.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

First, we set up the “Brain Trust” advisory board and published our initial Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda, including a health status review comparing Portugal, Spain and the EU-27.

Towards building customised clinical research training programmes, a joint GIMM and VHIR team conducted a campus-wide needs assessment (survey, interviews, in-person co-creation workshop) for potential end-users.

We installed two brand new digital technologies platforms (proteomics and metabolomics) and recruited international experts to lead them. The proteomics facility has been working closely with the Flagship 3 team to analyze different biological sample types from pediatric brain tumor patients with preliminary results integrated into a la Caixa grant application.

The Biobank digital upgrade was initiated and we established 4 new longitudinal sample collections, one for each of the pilot flagships: Colorectal cancer, Breast Cancer, Lung Brain Metastases plus the Healthy Donors Collection (676 new donors, 132 with 3 timepoints).

We organized two knowledge exchange visits with the VHIR clinical trials team (one in Barcelona, one in Lisbon), formally initiating the auditing of current operations and co-designing a novel strategy for a multicentric Clinical Research Hub in Portugal.

We formally redeveloped the COVID-19 lab into the Mission lab, which has already supported two of the R&I flagships, playing a key role in screening logistics.

Regarding R&D, we initiated Missions 1, 2 and 3. During this period, two clinical studies related to Mission 1 were approved with the involvement of 5 public and private hospitals and over 80 clinicians, initiating the pilot (opportunistic) phase of patient recruitment, stool processing SOPs and microbiome sequencing.

Towards responsible research and innovation, we formalised a collaboration with the Institute of Social Sciences (ICS) towards participatory research processes (incl. citizen science) and ensuring a robust project impact analysis.

We hired for several key positions, including a Director of HR (People and Culture), Director of Communications and Institutional Affairs, Data Steward and Data Protection Officer.

We set up management frameworks and brought the whole CARE team together on two occasions, for the kick-off meeting in June 2023 and for the first annual meeting in June 2024.

In 2024, the new GIMM-CARE brand was formally launched, establishing the centre’s visual autonomy.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

Governance Model: GIMM-CARE, as part of GIMM, is now one of the most visible scientific research centres in the country, bringing key investment opportunities. Further internationalisation will contribute to success.

Biobank Donation Drives: Increasing the breadth and quality of biobank samples increases research potential and collaboration opportunities with external entities. Further market analysis is required.

Biobanks: Boosting health research Advanced Course: This course fills a gap in access to learning modules around managing a Biobank. This is a clear opportunity for CARE to lead as a provider of clinical research training.

VHIR-iMM Joint Clinical Research Days: These joint events auditing Iberian practices have the potential to shape a new approach to clinical research management in Portugal.

Proof-of-concept new CRC treatment: This work provides evidence for novel immunotherapy treatment for solid cancer (accepted for publication in Nature Cancer). Further clinical trials will be required.

Semana da Mama Campaigns: These awareness-raising campaigns were attended by almost 2000 citizens, raising funds, reducing stigma and increasing the likelihood that woman will proactively get screened and reducing their risk of late-stage metastatic breast cancer.

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