European specialists in acute lymphoblastic leukemia meet at the Josep Carreras Institute to advance its treatment

At the Josep Carreras Foundation, we continue to promote international scientific collaboration as a key tool to advance knowledge and treatment of hematological diseases. In this context, the Instituto de Investigación contra la Leucemia Josep Carreras recently hosted a meeting of European specialists in acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).

The meeting, held on January 9 and 10, was organized by the group of Josep Maria Ribera, group leader at the Institute, and brought together members of EWALL (European Working Group on Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia), a collaborative network of European research groups dedicated to the treatment of this disease.

During the meeting, researchers and clinicians shared experiences on the diagnosis and treatment of ALL, with the aim of jointly advancing the development of new therapeutic strategies. These types of meetings highlight that biomedical research is not an isolated process, but rather one that depends on international partnerships and continuous collaboration to achieve meaningful progress for patients.

EWALL brings together leading cooperative groups across Europe, including GMALL (Germany), GRAALL (France-Belgium-Switzerland), GIMEMA (Italy), UKALL (United Kingdom), HOVON (the Netherlands), PALG (Poland), NOPHO (Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark), and PETHEMA (Spain). In addition, EWALL is part of and leads the Adult ALL Specialized Working Group of the European Hematology Association, focused on generating and sharing knowledge on the treatment of ALL.

This was the second time the Josep Carreras Institute hosted a meeting of this group, which gathers twice a year. The objective is to share clinical and research experiences across countries and to work together on the development of treatments for the different subtypes of the disease.

Key topics addressed during this meeting included advances in the treatment of Philadelphia chromosome-positive ALL, central nervous system leukemia prophylaxis, and the treatment of T-cell ALL. The meeting also provided space to exchange information on studies and clinical trials conducted in the participating countries.

Josep Maria Ribera highlighted “the high level of the presentations and the interesting discussion generated from the results that were presented.” Participants also had the opportunity to visit the Institute’s facilities and expressed their appreciation for the organization and the opportunity to hold this type of focused meeting at the Josep Carreras Institute.

At the Josep Carreras Foundation, we remain committed to fostering spaces for collaboration and knowledge exchange, convinced that only through joint efforts can we continue to move forward towards better treatments and, ultimately, towards a cure for hematological malignancies.