Brussels - The Anticancer Fund is delighted to invite you to its upcoming webinar: “Drug repurposing for cancer in the COVID-19 era – An opportunity for transformational change?” which will take place online on Thursday 25 June.

The objective of this webinar is to raise awareness of the untapped potential of repurposed drugs in the treatment of cancer against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic.

While the COVID-19 outbreak has brought to light the tremendous potential of repurposed drugs to help tackle immediate global health threats in a rapid and cost-efficient way, it has also exposed the pitfalls of off-label use and inadequate evidence. In cancer treatment, repurposed drugs have shown promise in terms of costs, time efficiency and effectiveness but there are still significant scientific, financial and regulatory hurdles to their development in Europe.

This webinar will bring together EU policy makers, researchers, physicians and patients to discuss whether the current crisis is driving us towards a paradigm shift in the way cancer treatments are researched, developed and delivered, with particular attention to the following themes:

• The fundamental value to individuals, society and the economy of drug repurposing
• The need for cost-efficient and sustainable solutions for cancer patients now and in the post COVID-19 era
• The regulatory and financial barriers to independent clinical trials on drug repurposing

Sustainable access to safe and cost-effective therapeutic options for cancer and other diseases will be more important than ever as Europe rallies to treat an ever-increasing number of patients through the post-COVID-19 recession.

The interactive format of the event will provide an excellent opportunity to inform Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan and the EU Cancer Mission Board to ensure that the potential of drug repurposing is fully unlocked and benefits all cancer patients in the future.

Our programme

16:00 Opening & welcome remarks

• Peter O'Donnell (moderator)
• Member of the European Parliament Tilly Metz

16:10 From COVID-19 to cancer: Why do we need to talk about drug repurposing? by Lydie Meheus, Anticancer Fund, Belgium

16:20 Message from the European Commission & the European Medicines Agency

• Hans-Georg Eichler, European Medicines Agency, The Netherlands
• Jan-Willem Van de Loo, DG RTD, European Commission, Belgium

16:45 Panel discussion: Forward-thinking solutions and policy responses to incentivise clinical research and bring repurposed drugs into oncology practice

• Nicolas André, Hôpital pour Enfants de la Timone, AP-HM, France
• Delphine Heenen, KickCancer, Belgium
• Bishal Gyawali, Department of Public Health Sciences & Department of Oncology, Queen's University, Kingston, Canada
• Matthew Hall, National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, United States

17:25 Questions & Answers with participants

17:40 Closing by Peter O'Donnell (moderator)

To register for the event, please click here.

To discover more about our policy work and about how we connect with decision-makers, read here.

To find out more about drug repurposing, have a look here.