Patients Shaping Cancer Research

What does it take to bridge the gap between researchers and patients? This episode features a panel of scientists, researcher-oncologists, and patient advocates from several European countries (France, Belgium, Switzerland, and Slovenia) as well as Canada and the United States. They discuss how collaboration between patients and researchers can be promoted in order to strengthen research outcomes. Our guests address the importance of sharing medical data, biomarkers, and collective learning, while also considering related issues like the right to be forgotten or diagnosis- related discrimination, before focusing on the development of meaningful research advocate partnerships. Different existing models of incorporating patient opinions are discussed alongside some practical advice and calls for action for both patients and researchers to help move these efforts forward. This episode has been adapted, with permission from the panellists, from the open forum discussion at the EACR-OECI Conference on Patient Involvement in Cancer Research, a virtual event held on 28 October 2025. 🔗 Access transcripts for all our episodes at magazine.eacr.org/podcast