German Study Prize of the Körber Foundation Awarded to Lena Cords
Dr. Lena Cords, a researcher at Helmholtz Munich, has been awarded the German Study Prize by the Körber Foundation in the category of natural and technical sciences for her doctoral thesis at the University of Zurich and ETH Zurich. The prize is endowed with 25,000 euros. In her work, she investigated the role of connective tissue in cancer.
When Connective Tissue Fights Cancer
While working with Prof. Bernd Bodenmiller's group at UZH and ETH Zurich, Dr. Lena Cords developed a novel classification system for cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs). These connective tissue cells constantly interact with tumor cells, significantly impacting tumor development by either supporting or suppressing its growth. Using her classification system, Lena Cords demonstrated that the distribution of different CAF types strongly influences both patient prognosis and therapy success.
The aim of her doctoral thesis was to identify possible new therapeutic approaches that focus not on the tumor itself but on the connective tissue surrounding the tumor. “Connective tissue therapy has the potential to become the next milestone in cancer treatment. A cancer-type-independent classification system for cancer-associated fibroblasts, like the one I developed in my research, can pave the way for this. With this system, we can predict which connective tissue cells should be specifically targeted. I see this as a crucial step toward precision medicine.” Since February 2024, Lena Cords has been conducting research in the Precision Regenerative Medicine Group led by Prof. Herbert Schiller at Helmholtz Munich, supported by an EMBO Postdoctoral Fellowship.
About the German Study Prize
The Körber Foundation awards one first prize of €25,000 and two second prizes of €5,000 in each of the three categories: Social Sciences, Natural and Technical Sciences, and Humanities and Cultural Studies. This year, 719 participants submitted entries. The Körber Foundation's German Study Prize is awarded annually to doctoral students who have addressed socially relevant topics in their dissertations and presented tangible results. The patron of the award is the President of the Bundestag, Bärbel Bas. The award ceremony will take place in Berlin in December 2024.
