Cancer research is highly data intensive, making efficient data management essential to enabling precision medicine for European citizens.

The ELIXIR Cancer Data Community was established early in 2024, following the publication of the Community’s white paper. The Community brings together expertise and resources to gather, manage and analyse clinical and biomedical data. By joining forces with other initiatives focused on human data, including several Horizon Europe-funded projects, ELIXIR aims to enhance the data infrastructure, improving the accessibility, quality and interoperability of data, ultimately accelerating discoveries in biomedical research and enabling better decision-making.

Effective data management involves the adoption of standardised data formats, robust data privacy and the engagement of healthcare professionals. Broad interoperability of data, metadata, research software and computational infrastructure are all critical for data to make a difference to cancer prevention and treatment.

The scope of the Community includes running pilot projects, delivering training and lectures, providing a network of experts to respond to funding opportunities, and influencing the direction of policy development in cancer research.