StrikeBC

Lead Institution: Medical University Vienna

Lead Institutions: Medical University Innsbruck, Medical University Graz, CeMM, University Hospital St. Pölten, University Hospital Wiener Neustadt, Ordensklinikum Linz, University Hospital Salzburg of Paracelsus Medical Private University, Convent  Hospital of the Brothers of St. John of God in Vienna

Head: Priv.-Doz. Bernhard Englinger, PhD

Mentor: Prof. Dr. Dr. h. c. mult. Shahrokh F. Shariat

Deputy Head: Dr. Ekaterina Laukhtina

Project Manager: Munkh-Amgalan Lkhagvasuren

Contact: fgevxrop@zrqhavjvra.np.ng

Bladder cancer is one of the most common cancers worldwide, and the number of people affected is rising. The disease places a heavy burden on patients and also on society as a whole. Treating bladder cancer is challenging because the disease can behave very differently from one person to another. As a result, some patients receive more treatment than necessary, which can reduce their quality of life, while others receive too little treatment, lowering their chances of survival.

To address these challenges, the StrikeBC consortium is building a nationwide research and education platform that brings together experts from many different scientific fields. The goal of StrikeBC is to improve treatment decisions for people with bladder cancer by focusing on two key questions.

First, the team is investigating whether certain patients, whose cancer has completely disappeared after initial treatment, might be able to avoid major surgery in which the entire bladder is removed. This type of surgery has a major impact on daily life. The researchers aim to find reliable ways to identify these patients and monitor them closely so that surgery can be safely avoided when possible.

Second, the project explores whether personalized treatment approaches can help patients with advanced bladder cancer that has spread to other parts of the body and no longer responds to standard therapies. The research group will study how treatments can be tailored to the individual biological characteristics of each patient’s tumor.

To achieve this, detailed information will be collected over time, including data from blood and tumor samples, medical imaging, and laboratory experiments using models that closely resemble the disease. Advanced data science methods will be used to bring these different sources of information together and to better understand how they interact.

An important part of the project is the involvement of patients themselves. By sharing their experiences and concerns, patients help ensure that the research focuses on what truly matters to them. Ultimately, the aim is to develop personalized, patient-centered treatments that improve both survival and quality of life for people living with bladder cancer.