Call for partners: PELICAN

An individual’s response to cancer therapy and its side-effects may depend on tumour and personal characteristics as well as lifestyle factors. Personalized approaches to optimize outcomes of cancer treatment are limited as long as the underlying mechanisms explaining an individual’s response to cancer therapy are unknown. To be able to optimize treatment for each individual patient, differences in tumour characteristics, treatment, personal characteristics and lifestyle, but also in personal needs, and preferences, should be taken into account. Digital tools may offer a promising means to implement personalized approaches, aimed at promotion of sustained health behavior change, in clinical care.

The consortium

The PELICAN consortium will join forces to build a research infrastructure including ongoing prospective cancer cohort studies with data on treatment and outcomes. These existing cohort studies are collecting biospecimens and data on quality of life and lifestyle factors, such as diet, dietary supplements and body composition at several time points before, during and after treatment. Combining data will provide the statistical power to identify personal/clinical characteristics and lifestyle factors associated with side-effects, comorbidities, cancer recurrence and mortality. This efficient infrastructure will also serve as a sampling frame to allow sub-studies to evaluate 1) biological mechanisms and 2) state-of-the art, smart applications (such as side-effects apps, sensors of response, and 3) personal lifestyle interventions.

Results will be translated to personalized lifestyle support implementable in clinics. Throughout this initiative, tools will be developed and evaluated in collaboration with patients and healthcare providers, to promote uptake, compliance and effectiveness.

Invitation to collaborate

The above described infrastructure proposal will be submitted for funding to the NWA-ORC initiative, a Dutch governmental program.

Co-applicants of this initiative are: University Medical Centre Utrecht, Alliance Nutrition in Care (Rijnstate Hospital + Hospital Gelderse Vallei),  RadboudUMC, TU Eindhoven, University Maastricht, Tilburg University, Netherlands Comprehensive Cancer Organisation, Wageningen Research-FBR.  Cooperating partners include The Netherlands Federation of Patient Organisations and National Netwerk of Oncology Dietiticans.

Granted projects receive 90% subsidy funding. The other 10% is contributed by partners either cash or in kind. As co-funding partners, we especially invite SMIs focusing on pharmacology, biomarker analyses, microbiomics, e-health (e-care), artificial intelligence in health care, sustainable lifestyle changes.