TRANSCAN-3 sets leading-edge objectives by encouraging: a) discussion with all key players (researchers, citizens, patient organisations, policy makers, industrial sector, third sector organisations, etc.); b) inclusive communication and dissemination of results; and, c) networking strategies that allow developing innovative ways of connecting science to society.
TRANSCAN-3 also expects to become a unique platform in the field that fosters: early-career capacity building; open data access and sharing of data; transfer of knowledge between researchers from different countries; and, the empowerment of patients and community advocates throughout the cancer research continuum.
Another key component of TRANSCAN-3 is its focus on open data access and sharing of data. TRANSCAN-3 will take actions to stimulate a culture of data sharing among all relevant stakeholders, and to leverage the potential of the information serving the spectrum of cancer research through mechanisms that could maximise the usefulness of the data and could accelerate discoveries by the research community. To support this need, TRANSCAN-3 will seek synergies with other strategic European and global initiatives and as well as with ESFRI Research Infrastructures and e-Infrastructures.
Overall objectives of TRANSCAN-3 are:
- To strategically pool regional and national public and private resources dedicated to cancer research with common scientific goals;
- To align national and regional public and private cancer research programmes; and,
- To strengthen, widen and make sustainable the existing network of funders.
The main instrument to achieve these objectives will be the launch of joint transnational calls on translational cancer research with the purpose to fund excellent research projects, to address research on the most relevant topics, and to boost transnational scientific collaborations.
Specific objectives of TRANSCAN-3 are:
- To launch and implement, in the first year of the project, an EU co-funded call for proposals on translational cancer research with a wide-ranging participation of public and private funders from countries and regions across Europe and beyond;
- To launch at least three additional joint calls, without EU co-funding, on the second, third and fourth year of the project;
- To improve collaboration between research funders in order to identify critical funding gaps to support research projects with potential to deliver better outcomes that can make significant difference to cancer incidence, mortality and quality of life of cancer patients;
- To implement connected activities which are related to the follow-up of funded research projects, their regular monitoring and dissemination of their results;
- To set-up and guarantee a communication strategy, addressed to all societal stakeholders; and,
- To implement strategies on identifying research and innovation priorities, on interacting with relevant European and global stakeholders, on sustainability of the network and on strengthening the involvement of patients and the support for early-career scientists.