WARM WELCOME TO THE EUROPEAN LIQUID BIOPSY SOCIETY
EU COMMISSION – ELBS, A “LEGACY” ACCORDING TO IHI
The ELBS has recently been termed a “legacy” by the Innovative Health Initiative (IHI), a public private partnership between the European Union and European pharmaceutical industry. As a successor of the highly successful EU-IHI-CANCER-ID project, the ELBS is honored to receive such affirmation for its efforts in innovation and sustainability. See here what the IHI office had to say…
LIQUID BIOPSY IS A NATURE CANCER MILESTONE
The concept of characterizing and potentially detecting tumors through a minimal invasive procedure (such as the collection of blood) harbors enormous potential to improve cancer patient management. This fact has been highlighted by the scientific publishing powerhouse “Nature” by inclusion of liquid biopsy into the Nature Cancer Milestones that “celebrate two decades of breakthroughs in basic, translational and clinical research which have revolutionised our understanding and management of cancer.”
COVER: © NATURE | Vol 545, No 7655 | 25 May 2017
TRANSLATION OF RESEARCH INTO CLINICAL PRACTICE
The ELBS aims to ensure that liquid biopsy (LB) tests become part of clinical routine for the benefit of cancer patients in the near future (< 5 years). It is our mission to promote comprehensive research on liquid biopsy leading to robust LB assays that are subsequently validated in clinical trials providing evidence for the clinical utility of LB. In order to close the gap between the thousands of research publications and the lack of LB biomarkers available in routine clinical practice, the ELBS strategy is to:
- Build a strong and interconnected network with all essential stake holders on board
- Define good practice criteria for inclusion of LB in clinical trials
- Revise and design “ELBS approved” clinical trials in the realm of LB
- Bench-mark novel technologies
- Improve and establish SOPs
- Conduct multi-center ring trials assessing and comparing technology proficiency
- Develop strategies for reimbursement of liquid biopsy assays in routine clinical practice
ELBS partners believe that the goal of improving patient care through LB assays will only be reachable as an agile and devoted collective. The combined expertise of all our members firmly establishes the ELBS as a driving initiative in the LB field.