The Precision Oncology Ireland (POI) consortium recently gathered in Galway, marking the first full-consortium meeting of Phase 2 of the research programme. Coinciding with the Irish Association of Cancer Research (IACR) annual conference at the Galway Bay Hotel in Salthill, the event brought together the consortium’s academic, non-profit, industry and clinical partners for the first in-person assembly since the official launch last October.
Programme Director Professor Walter Kolch and Systems Biology Ireland Centre Manager Dr Eadaoin McKiernan opened proceedings with a comprehensive overview of current programme activities. The presentation provided an important forum for consortium members to offer feedback and guidance during this critical setup phase, ensuring strategic alignment across all partners.
This was followed by a series of updates from the leaders of each of POI’s five work packages, who summarised progress to date in establishing the individual projects within each work project. Excitingly, we heard of some of the first PhD and postdoctoral researchers currently being hired onto POI research projects. We look forward to getting to know all our new researchers and working closely with them over the next few years.
Speakers (top left clockwise): Dr. Eadaoin McKiernan, Prof. Walter Kolch, Dr. Róisín Dwyer, Prof. Jacintha O’Sullivan, Prof. Jonathan Bond, Prof. Donal Brennan, Yvonne O’Meara, Prof. William Gallagher
Deputy Director Professor Donal Brennan and newly appointed Engaged Research Manager Yvonne O’Meara led an interactive session exploring how patient and public involvement will be woven throughout POI’s research activities, constituting a fundamental pillar of the programme strategy.
The day concluded with an update from Professor Jacintha O’Sullivan, co-lead of the Training and Professional Development Working Group. Amongst other updates, we heard of ongoing progress in establishing our Scholarship programme which will soon welcome 12 new PhD researchers across Trinity College Dublin & Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, significantly increasing collaborative links and bringing in new project leaders from these institutions.
The following day, we were also honoured to sponsor a PPI-focused session on the first day of IACR. This provides a valuable opportunity to begin gathering input on our EPE framework and to engage directly with diverse voices at an early stage of its development.
The successful gathering in Galway marked an exciting milestone for POI. With new team members coming on board, projects starting to get underway and patient & public voices being embedded from the outset, phase 2 of POI has hit the ground running. There’s an exciting few years of work ahead but we are well on the way.
Meet the team here