Study
CPCT-02
Data & DNA profiles
Map the tumor's DNA profile and study how it relates to the response to standard therapy.
Studies & research
Big ideas in oncology
CPCT supports internationally leading studies, carried out together with dozens of Dutch and European hospitals. The goal: a tailored approach for every patient with cancer.
Study
DRUP
Personalized treatment
Patients with metastatic cancer receive targeted drugs based on the tumor's molecular characteristics.
Study
PRIME-ROSE
DRUP across Europe
European consortium scaling the DRUP model across ten countries to make precision medicine widely accessible.
Study
DAP
Faster access
The Drug Access Protocol accelerates access to new targeted anti-cancer drugs pending reimbursement.
Study
BEACON
Precision prevention
The BEACON consortium unravels the hidden codes in the 97% of our DNA that contains no genes (The Dark Genome), to better predict cancer risk.
Study·CPCT-02
CPCT-02 study
CPCT-02 was a large national data-collection study. Data was gathered from patients with metastatic cancer who were about to start standard anti-cancer treatment.
Participants provided a tube of blood and a small tumor biopsy before starting treatment, chemotherapy, immunotherapy or hormone therapy, for example.
The full tumor DNA was then mapped in the Hartwig Medical Foundation lab. DNA changes, treatment outcomes and other clinical data are stored in a database.
By combining all of this data from very many patients, an enormously valuable database has been built up with detailed information about tumors, DNA changes and treatments. For years now this has been an important basis for doctors to better predict for whom a treatment will or will not work.
Study·DRUP
Drug Rediscovery Protocol (DRUP)
DRUP is a national treatment study, run in many Dutch hospitals.
It is open to patients with advanced or metastatic cancer who have no remaining standard treatment options. Based on the tumor's molecular characteristics, patients receive already-approved targeted drugs that are normally used for other cancer types.
Outcomes for the first 1,600 patients were published in Nature in 2026: Verkerk K, et al. Prospective evaluation of genomics-guided off-label treatment. Everything about the study, including the participating hospitals and local principal investigators, is on the DRUP page.
Study·PRIME-ROSE
PRIME-ROSE
PRIME-ROSE (Precision Cancer Medicine Repurposing System Using Pragmatic Clinical Trials) is a European Commission-funded consortium that scales the success of DRUP to ten European countries. As a result, similar studies have been opened in these countries, based on the DRUP study. By harmonising these national precision oncology studies, patients with metastatic cancer gain broader access to targeted therapies based on the molecular profile of their tumor. By working together within this consortium, evidence can be gathered more quickly on whether drugs are effective or not. This is especially important for patients with a rare tumor or rare molecular profile.
CPCT and NKI-Antoni van Leeuwenhoek are closely involved in this consortium. More information: prime-rose.eu and pcm4eu.eu.
Study·DAP
Drug Access Protocol (DAP)
The Drug Access Protocol is a national framework to facilitate access to new targeted anti-cancer drugs and collect data on effectiveness and safety. It concerns drugs that are not yet eligible for reimbursement in the Netherlands, pending additional data.
DAP is a broadly supported initiative of NVMO, Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, the Dutch National Health Care Institute (ZiNL) and Dutch Health Insurers (ZN). Nine hospitals take part: Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, Erasmus MC, Maastricht UMC+, Radboudumc, UMC Groningen, Amsterdam UMC, LUMC, Prinses Máxima Centrum and UMC Utrecht. The DAP design is described by Zeverijn LJ, et al. in The Lancet Oncology (2022).
More about DAP: the official NVMO/NVALT protocol document and the DAP page, with the participating centres per drug.
Study·Dark Genome
The Dark Genome (BEACON)
Only about 3% of human DNA – the genes – is well understood. The remaining 97%, often referred to as the dark genome, is still poorly understood. Scientific research has shown that this dark genome is full of codes that determine when, where and how much a gene is read. And it is precisely this part of our DNA that turns out to differ strongly between individuals and between families. Also for families in which specific forms of cancer – such as breast, ovarian and prostate cancer – occur frequently, the key to better understanding, prevention and treatment appears to lie in our dark genome. It is therefore crucial to unravel the code of our DNA, and to better understand how specific DNA variations in our dark genome can ultimately result in the development of cancer.
CPCT supports the work of the BEACON consortium, which uses large-scale new measurement methods and artificial intelligence (AI) to, for the first time, unravel the hidden codes in the dark genome. The foundation for this work is described in an article in Nature. The BEACON consortium now aims to make the effects of natural variation in the dark genome predictable, so that it becomes possible to better estimate who is at increased risk of cancer. In the long term this will contribute to the early detection of cancer, which is essential for successful treatment.
Below, an interview with one of the lead researchers, Prof. Bas van Steensel.
Study partners
- Participating hospitals (>40), see Patient FAQ
- Hartwig Medical Foundation for sequencing and data infrastructure