The Cancer Researcher Podcast

How Nerves Shape Cancer: From Energy Rewiring to Metastasis

In recent years, the neuronal component of the cancer microenvironment and the metabolic plasticity of cancer cells have become increasingly recognised as essential for cancer progression. Dr Simon Grelet and Dr Gustavo Ayala are two key researchers who work at the interface of cancer neuroscience and cancer metabolism, investigating metabolic reprogramming as a consequence of tumour innervation. In this episode, we will discuss their research on neuron- cancer cell transfer of mitochondria.
🔗 Read more about the publication here
🔗 Access transcripts for all our episodes at magazine.eacr.org/podcast 

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 

From Bedside to Bench: Lessons from three award-winning scientists

What happens when clinical care directly informs scientific discovery? This episode sees EACR award winners Charlie Swanton, Ayelet Erez and Daniel Kirschenbaum reflect on what drew them to pursuing cancer research alongside patient care, how bedside experiences guide lab investigations, and what it takes to turn a promising finding into real clinical progress. We also touch on recent breakthroughs in their work, and the biggest changes they’ve witnessed in the field.
🔗 Access transcripts for all our episodes at magazine.eacr.org/podcast 

A lifelong quest to understand cancer and cellular plasticity: Prof Xin Lu’s research journey following P53

Professor Xin Lu, Director of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, Oxford Branch, and keynote speaker at EACR 2026, talks about her scientific journey shaped by the early, influential studies of P53 and its role as a central tumour suppressor.
Tracing her journey from early training in China to landmark work in the UK, the conversation explores how fundamental questions about DNA damage, cell death, and oncogene stress led to the discovery of the ASPP family of P53 regulators.
The discussion further expands into the concept of cellular plasticity as a driving force in cancer initiation, progression, and therapy resistance, with insights into how tumour suppressors, infection, and environmental stress shape cellular identity. Together, these reflections highlight how decades of curiosity-driven research have helped define modern cancer biology.
🔗 Access transcripts for all our episodes at magazine.eacr.org/podcast 

Using AI to bridge chemistry, proteomics and precision medicine: Prof Bernhard Küster’s research journey

Professor Bernhard Küster, keynote speaker at EACR 2026, talks about his scientific journey from chemistry to chemical proteomics and precision medicine. He reflects on how an interdisciplinary mindset - combining chemistry, biology, and computational science - has shaped his approach to understanding how drugs act on proteins and how this knowledge can inform personalised cancer treatments. He also shares practical advice for early-career researchers on how to embrace interdisciplinarity in their work.
Bernhard discusses his team’s pioneering work developing technologies such as Prosit, Decrypt-E and Decrypt-M, and highlights how artificial intelligence is accelerating discoveries in proteomics. He also underscores the vital role of the clinical community in providing well-annotated tumour samples - an essential foundation for meaningful AI-driven cancer research.
🔗 Access transcripts for all our episodes at magazine.eacr.org/podcast 

Research Focus: How Dietary Fats Shape Immune Defenses Against Cancer

What you eat – specifically the type of fat – might matter for how well your immune system can fight cancer under conditions of obesity. Dr. Hannah Prendeville and Dr. Britta Kunkemoeller, two key researchers behind this work, will discuss the key mechanisms they uncovered that involve weakened immune systems’ “killer” cells.
🔗 Read more about the publication: https://magazine.eacr.org/highlights-in-cancer-research-december-2025/6 
🔗 Access transcripts for all our episodes at magazine.eacr.org/podcast 
 

Behind the Scenes at the EACR Congress

Conferences don’t just happen – people make them. In this episode, Johanna Joyce, Joana Paredes and Mariangela Russo take you behind the scenes of the Annual Congress of the European Association for Cancer Research, from shaping sessions and selecting speakers to fostering early career opportunities and spotting emerging science. Hear their reflections on EACR 2025 in Lisbon and get an insider glimpse of the themes and initiatives planned for EACR 2026 in Budapest.
🔗 Access transcripts for all our episodes at magazine.eacr.org/podcast

Unlocking Cancer's Neural Code: A Deep (Molecular) Dive into Cancer Neuroscience with Trace-n-Seq

In this episode, we take a quick dive into the rapidly evolving field of cancer neuroscience. Joining us are Dr. Andreas Trumpp and Dr. Vera Thiel from DKFZ and HI-STEM, who introduce Trace-n-Seq, a groundbreaking technology that enables the molecular characterization of neurons within tumours at single-cell resolution. We discuss the application of this cutting-edge innovation in pancreatic cancer, from the insights it offers into neuron–cancer–microenvironment interactions, to the powerful clinical implications.
This episode focuses on the following publication in Nature (10.1038/s41586-025-08735-3), highlighted in a recent edition of the EACR’s Highlights in Cancer Research.
🔗 Read more about the publication: https://magazine.eacr.org/highlights-in-cancer-research-july-2025/9/
🔗 Access transcripts for all our episodes at magazine.eacr.org/podcast 
 

Bugging Cancer: Engineering Salmonella for Cancer Therapy

Two of the biggest challenges for the treatment of most solid cancers are drug toxicity, particularly systemic toxicity, and drug permeation in the tumoral tissue. These obstacles may be mitigated through the development of intracellular delivery systems designed to selectively deliver drugs to the tumour.
In this episode, we discuss with Dr. Vishnu Raman, CSO and co-founder at Ernst Pharmaceuticals, the benefits and challenges of using genetically engineered Salmonella strains as a vector for the transport of therapeutic proteins into malignant cells. The focus will be on his recent publication in Molecular Therapy (10.1016/j.ymthe.2024.12.038), highlighted in a recent edition of the EACR’s Highlights in Cancer Research.
🔗 Read more about the publication: https://magazine.eacr.org/highlights-in-cancer-research-march-2025/3/
🔗 Access transcripts for all our episodes at magazine.eacr.org/podcast

Research focus: novel approach to advance treatment of KRAS-driven non-small cell lung cancer based on ERK5 and FAK inhibition

We speak with Dr. Georgia Konstantinidou and Dr. Chiara Pozzato from University of Bern about their recent pre-clinical research investigating a new potential treatment approach for KRAS driven cancers. The conversation explores the role of FAK signalling in KRAS driven NSCLC and potential approaches to bypass drug resistance against FAK inhibitors from the molecular mechanisms involved to the impact of their study for the wider cancer research community.
This study has been published in EMBO Molecular Medicine and was included in the EACR's Highlights in Cancer Research, a summary of the most interesting and impactful recent papers in cancer research.
🔗 Read more about the publication: https://magazine.eacr.org/highlights-in-cancer-research-december-2024/7/
🔗 Access transcripts for all our episodes at magazine.eacr.org/podcast