New building for German Cancer Research Center in Dresden

The German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) is expanding its Saxon site. The foundation stone has been laid for a new building on the Oncology Campus of the University Medical Center at TU Dresden, which, according to the announcement, will create unique conditions for the development of future technologies in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer. The Free State of Saxony is financing the construction with 20 million euros. "Saxony is continuing to invest in cancer research," said Minister President Michael Kretschmer (CDU) at the ceremony. He spoke of a "further milestone in developing new methods for the prevention and treatment of cancer at the highest level and thus saving lives".

Smart sensors, robotics and AI are the focus

The five-storey building at the University Hospital is due to be completed in April 2027 and will house and interlink areas of basic oncological research and cancer prevention. The focus will be on smart sensors, robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) as well as the development of technological methods for personalized, risk-adapted cancer prevention and early detection. In a research outpatient clinic, citizens will also be able to find out about prevention options and their personal cancer risk and take part in scientific studies. The building is being constructed as part of the National Cancer Prevention Center, which the DKFZ and German Cancer Aid are currently establishing.

Free state relies on high technologies

Michael Baumann, Chairman of the DKFZ Board of Directors, sees "immense potential" for tumor diagnostics and therapy in the technologies of the future. And Dresden, with its University of Excellence TU, the largest industrial cluster for microelectronics in Europe and a particularly start-up-friendly climate, offers "the best conditions for fundamental developments in this field". Kretschmer pointed out that the Free State has relied on a strong research landscape and high technologies for decades. In particular, the connection with future technologies such as smart sensors and AI is "a great benefit for cancer research throughout Germany".

Facilities for patient-oriented cancer research have since been established at the DKFZ site in Dresden, which was founded in 2019, such as a home for the National Center for Tumor Diseases and the German Consortium for Translational Cancer Research. And the new building now under construction is to be extended at a later date, once funding has been approved.