Programme 1 : ThARGET (Theranostic Application Radionuclides Getting Eradication of Tumours)
Developing tools in nuclear medicine in order to predict prognosis and elaborate innovative targeted and personalised therapies in oncology.
Coordinators : Françoise Kraeber-Bodéré and Michel Chérel
The ThARGET programme brings together teams of clinicians, academics and researchers from the CHUN, the ICO, the CRCI²NA, the ECN, the Arronax cyclotron and the LEMNA.
It is underpinned by the multidisciplinary expertise of the players in the Loire region from research into nuclear medicine (radiochemistry, radiopharmacy, imaging, biology, physics, nuclear oncology), national leaders in PET/CT in radio-immunotherapy, in immuno-PET and in alpha-immunotherapy.
Cyclotron Arronax
The ThARGET programme is dedicated to the development of radiotracers and novel imaging approaches for detecting tumours on a whole-body level and the eradication of cells which are resistant to conventional treatment. Thanks to imaging and nuclear oncology, the objectives of this programme are to improve the diagnostical performance as well as the sensitivity and specificity of prognosis. Likewise, the aim is to develop theranostic tools to detect and treat refractory disease. This programme is structured around the care pathway of the patients and integrates socio-organisational analysis of the integration of nuclear oncology into professional practice. It is organised into 5 axes :
Axis 1: Use of imaging for diagnosis as a predictive factor thanks to radiomics and the quantification of tumour heterogeneity.
Head Scientist: Thomas Carlier
PET/CT imaging allows you to determine the molecular characteristics of tumours thanks to mathematical methods for processing the image. Indeed, contrary to traditional analysis of standard images which is based on the visual interpretation of the tumour, its general shape, the take up of contrast or the intensity of the signal, radiomics computer-processes the examination of the images and produces complex quantitative data.
The objective of radiomics is to develop imaging biomarkers which help the clinicians at diagnosis and predict the response to anti-cancer treatments.
Axis 2 : Use of PET/CT imaging for therapeutic evaluation: Application for Multiple Myeloma.
Head Scientists: Caroline Bodet-Milin & Alain Faivre-Chauvet
Analysis of PET/CT images developed in axis 1 enables better diagnosis in patients with multiple myeloma and the identification of predictive factors for the response to anti-cancer treatment. A study of the evaluation of new tracers has enabled improvement in the detection of residual disease.
Axis 3 : Imaging of tumour heterogeneity at relapse: Application for breast cancer.
Head Scientist: Caroline Rousseau
The identification of the texture parameters of PET/CT images developed in axis 1 allows an improved diagnosis of patients with breast cancer and the identification of predictive factors for the response to anti-cancer treatment. New tracers are being evaluated.
Axis 4 : Use of innovative radiopharmaceuticals in Pet scanning and molecular radiotherapy.
Head Scientists : Joëlle Gaschet & François Guérard
New tracers that target tumour cells and their environment are being developed and the most interesting molecules are elaborated in order to be transferred to clinical use.
Axis 5 : Complexity of coordination in the context of innovation: the case of nuclear medicine.
Head Scientist : Bénédicte Geffroy
The objective of this axis is to redesign the coordination and cooperation between players in nuclear medicine, clinical health professionals and researchers, with the aim of optimising the role and place of nuclear medicine in a patients’ care pathway.