PANcreatic CAncer Initial Detection via liquid biopsy

Titled ‘Working in clusters: connecting projects to accelerate the EU Cancer Mission’ the Directorate-General for Research and Innovation recently issued a news article featuring PANCAID.

We’re honored that the EU Cancer Mission team spoke with our coordinator Professor Klaus Pantel to understand what working in a cluster actually looks like in practice.

PANCAID is proud to be member of the Prevention and Early Detection (Screening) cluster.

Read the full news here: https://research-and-innovation.ec.europa.eu/news/all-research-and-innovation-news/working-clusters-connecting-projects-accelerate-eu-cancer-mission-2026-02-02_en

Have you ever wondered what terms like ‘Cell-free DNA’, ‘Health technology assessment (HTA)’, or ‘Pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasia’ actually mean?

Medical terminology can be confusing at the best of times. To support patients, families, and the wider public, PANCAID experts have developed a glossary explaining key terms related to pancreatic cancer, liquid biopsy, and early detection.
You can browse the glossary from A–Z or filter by topic.

👉 Explore it here: https://pancaid-project.eu/for-patients-public/glossary/

The glossary will continue to grow as the project progresses.

Special thanks to all scientific teams who contributed, to PCE for checking the entries for accessibility, and to concentris for implementing the glossary on the website!

Last week, the PANCAID consortium gathered in Brussels for its 4th General Assembly, bringing together partners, early-career scientists, and advisors for two days of scientific exchange and strategic planning. The meeting opened with a liquid biopsy masterclass by Klaus Pantel and Catherine Alix-Panabières, followed by presentations from our Early Career Scientists highlighting progress across individual research projects. Across the sessions, PANCAID teams shared updates on all work packages, from defining patient cohorts and collecting biomaterial (WP1) to liquid biopsy analyses (WP2) and AI-driven data integration (WP3). Further discussions addressed modeling detection strategies, health economics (WP4), ethical considerations in early surveillance (WP5), communication activities (WP6), and project management (WP7). Impact Board and Scientific Advisory Board feedback provided valuable guidance moving forward.

In parallel, PANCAID hosted the 3rd Annual Prevention & Early Detection Cluster Meeting, strengthening collaboration with fellow EU-funded cancer projects.