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aborations T E X T BY M AL IN O T M ANI THE SJÖBERG PRIZE Dr Catherine J. Wu, MD, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute The prize is awarded in partnership between the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and the Sjöberg Foundation. The Foundation also provides the funding. The prize was established using a donation from businessman Bengt Sjöberg, who died from cancer in 2017. It is to be awarded to a person or persons who have made decisive contributions to cancer research, and amounts to 100,000 US dollars as a personal prize and 900,000 US dollars as funding for continued research. AWA R D SHE IS THE WINNER OF THE SJÖBERG PRIZE Catherine J. Wu, the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, is a pioneer in research that may result in the development of personalized vaccines to treat cancer. SHE HAS NOW been awarded the Sjöberg Prize, worth 1 million US dollars, for her work. “I’m a strong supporter and believer in innovation that comes from academic medicine. To be able to support risk-taking and trying to generate new and disruptive findings, ones that can help build and be impactful for patient care, I think that’s where we hope the support from this prize can go,” says Wu. “I’m speechless, utterly delighted. I appreciate recognizing me, but this also recognizes strong team science and collaboration that has really altered the treatment landscapes for patients. This is something we have developed together, as a group.” Wu has focused her research on small mutations in cancer cells, which give rise to tumor ONE IN THREE … … researchers globally is a woman, according to statistics from UNESCO. This year’s International Women and Girls in Science Day focused on Closing the gender gap in science. neoantigens. These are structures that the immune system’s T cells can recognize as foreign and attack. By sequencing DNA from healthy cells and cancer cells, she was able to identify a cancer patient’s unique tumor neoantigens. She then produced synthetic copies of these, which were injected as a type of vaccine. For some of the patients, this resulted in the immune system’s cells being activated and targeting the tumor cells. Her breakthrough results were published in an article in Nature in 2017, which describes an initial trial in which six patients with melanoma were vaccinated with patient-specific neoantigens. Since then, Wu and other researchers have continued to further develop this technique. NLS SWEDEN The government investigates new authority structure for funding of research and innovation The investigation proposes the establishment of three new funding agencies, The Science Agency, The Strategic Research Agency and The Innovation Agency. AT THE SAME TIME, the current funding agencies, Formas, Forte, the Swedish Research Council, and Vinnova, are phased out, and the funding of research and innovation at the Swedish Energy Agency is discontinued. SciLifeLab welcomes the investigation’s review, but also addresses that the proposal may rather result in increased political governance through administrative restructuring than be based on the needs of research, innovation, and society as such.SciLifeLab therefore advocates for an in-depth impact analysis of how the proposed system will affect the whole research and innovation system in the short and long term in Sweden before any proposed changes are implemented. SwedenBIO states that in general, the investigation is very well done, especially with regard to transparency and inclusion. It is also highly anticipated. It is about time to update the current system, and a reform aimed at increased clarity and simplified application processes is very welcome, they write. “In general, we support the proposal that a new authority structure should be established with essentially the tasks suggested by the investigator. However, we do not take a position on whether the option of three or two authorities is preferable,” writes SwedenBIO among other things. NLS NORDICLIFESCIENCE.ORG | 17 PHOTO SAM OGDEN