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Spanish National Brain Metastasis Network (RENACER): Implementation, Development and Coordination

20th national competition for scientific and technical research

Personalized therapy, immunotherapy and cancer

Senior Researcher : Eva Ortega Paíno

Research Centre or Institution : Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Oncológicas (CNIO). Madrid

Abstract

The National Network of Brain Metastases (RENACER) is a unique collaborative framework, in which CNIO-Biobank works as a structural axis for the identification, collection and characterisation of brain metastasis samples, to be made available to the research community, with the aim of promoting research in this field, and thus improving its diagnosis and treatment. This project aims to generate a unique brain metastasis collection that will allow basic and clinical studies, to help advance in knowledge and transfer it to pharmacological trials, fostering the development of more efficient and targeted personalised treatments.

RENACER, based on a coordinated effort, allows the collection of samples, accompanied by data and clinical information, following standardised and harmonised procedures and quality standards, which has positioned it as a national and international network of reference for researchers and clinicians interested in brain metastasis, and a key repository of this valuable material.

The network, to date, is composed of 16 reference hospitals nationwide, while continuing to expand to new specialists and centres, both within and outside Spain. Due to this, 120 confirmed cases have been collected and processed, generating 873 samples, available for research.

Likewise, through this initiative we have established:

- The hospital and research centres vertebration for sending extraordinarily high-quality samples with associated epidemiological and clinical data, and their processing and omic characterisation, generating a unique repository of brain metastases.
- An optimal strategy that allows the establishment of subgroups of brain metastases, according to their genetic, pharmacological, and molecular profile, for the validation of new drugs and specific biomarkers, challenging the historical way of treating brain metastases.
- A critical mass for the organisation of joint research projects, including the pharmaceutical industry, enabling the development of new approaches, achieving greater impact in the clinic, and advancing in the development of more precise and efficient personalised therapies and treatments.