When it was founded in 2004, the NCT Heidelberg was a facility unlike any other in Germany at the time. Modeled after the Comprehensive Cancer Centers known in the U.S., an institution was created that brings together cancer research and patient care under one roof. The fundamental principle of the NCT Heidelberg is translation – that is, the transfer of research findings into clinical practice and the use of insights from clinical practice to inform further research.

While the NCT Heidelberg initially looked to international pioneers for guidance, it soon became a model itself for further development in Germany. In 2015, the NCT Dresden was founded, also jointly supported by the German Cancer Research Center and the University Medical Center. 

A historic milestone for clinical-translational cancer research in Germany was reached in 2023: As part of the National Decade Against Cancer, four additional NCT sites – Berlin, SouthWest (Tübingen-Stuttgart, Ulm), WERA (Würzburg with partners in Erlangen, Regensburg, and Augsburg), and West (Essen/Cologne) – joined Heidelberg and Dresden.

To capture this collaboration in a catchy phrase, the term “One NCT” is used. One NCT signifies that six outstanding NCT sites, together with the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), form a particularly powerful whole.

One NCT aims to improve treatment outcomes and the quality of life for cancer patients and to promote outstanding clinical-translational research. To achieve these goals, One NCT relies on science-driven clinical trials and the structured involvement of patients as research partners in all phases of clinical research projects.

The NCT Heidelberg contributes its comprehensive expertise and research profile to the One NCT’s innovation activities. Together with other sites, it makes a major contribution to advancing clinical-translational cancer research in order to provide patients with improved access to the latest findings and innovations from research.