OnCo
institutionsInstitution

Vall d'Hebron University Hospital / VHIO

Vall d'Hebron is Spain's leading cancer research hospital and a global leader in phase 1 and breast cancer ADC trials.

VHIO (Tabernero, Cortés): leadership of DESTINY-Breast03/09, TROPION-Breast, colorectal (BEACON, BREAKWATER), and one of Europe's largest phase 1 units.

Location
Barcelona, ES
Type
cancer center
Website
vhio.net
Newsweek 2026 oncology rank
#28
OnCo score
#33 · 58 points (32 Newsweek + 0 NCI + 26 from 13 linked objects) · ranking

Programmes

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  • Breast ADC trials (Cortés)
  • Colorectal (Tabernero)
  • Phase 1

People

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Elena Élez
Head, Gastrointestinal and Endocrine Tumours Group, VHIO
Colorectal cancerBRAF and KRAS-mutant diseasePrecision oncology

Elena Élez is a colorectal cancer investigator who led the BREAKWATER trial's clinical programme.

Elena Garralda
Director, Early Drug Development Unit (UITM), VHIO
Phase 1 trialsImmuno-oncologyNovel modalities

Elena Garralda leads one of Europe's largest phase 1 units.

Enriqueta Felip
Head of Thoracic Cancers Unit, Vall d'Hebron; Professor, Autonomous University of Barcelona
Lung cancerTargeted therapyPerioperative immunotherapy

Thoracic oncologist who led IMpower010, establishing adjuvant atezolizumab in lung cancer.

Javier Cortés
Head, International Breast Cancer Center (IBCC), Barcelona; formerly Vall d'Hebron
Breast cancerHER2-positive diseaseAntibody-drug conjugates

Breast oncologist who led DESTINY-Breast03 and DESTINY-Breast09, the trials that made Enhertu the HER2-positive standard.

Joaquín Arribas
Director, Hospital del Mar Research Institute; ICREA Professor; formerly VHIO
HER2 biologyResistance to anti-HER2 therapyT-cell bispecifics

Cancer biologist who characterised truncated HER2 (p95HER2) and develops p95HER2-targeted T-cell engagers.

Josep Tabernero
Director, Vall d'Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO); Head of Medical Oncology, Vall d'Hebron University Hospital
Colorectal cancerGastrointestinal oncologyEarly drug development

Colorectal cancer trialist who led BEACON and BREAKWATER, bringing targeted therapy to BRAF-mutant disease; former ESMO President.

Key papers

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rctNew England Journal of Medicine 2025changed practice
BREAKWATER: encorafenib plus cetuximab with chemotherapy as first treatment for BRAF V600E-mutated colorectal cancer

Patients with newly diagnosed metastatic colorectal cancer whose tumour carries a BRAF V600E mutation, which is about 8-12% of cases, should now be offered encorafenib and cetuximab together with FOLFOX from the start rather than after chemotherapy fails; median survival has roughly doubled to about two and a half years. BRAF testing at diagnosis is therefore essential, alongside RAS and mismatch repair testing. The regimen is more toxic than chemotherapy alone.

Connected

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Pages like this

not linked directly; found by shared links

drugs

1
ApprovedSmall-molecule kinase inhibitor (BRAF)
Encorafenib · Braftovi

institutions

5
Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Oncológicas (CNIO)Hospital Clínic de Barcelona / IDIBAPSHospital del Mar / Hospital del Mar Research InstituteOrganisation of European Cancer InstitutesSOLTI Cancer Research Group

pathways

2
MYCTGF-β signalling

trials

2
DESTINY-Breast03DESTINY-Breast09

ideas

2
Can MYC be drugged directly, and will patients tolerate it?Hospital-exemption cell therapies at scale, backed by a shared registry

people

6
Elena ÉlezElena GarraldaEnriqueta FelipJavier CortésJoaquín ArribasJosep Tabernero

key papers

1
BREAKWATER: encorafenib plus cetuximab with chemotherapy as first treatment for BRAF V600E-mutated colorectal cancer