We are excited to announce a new strategic collaboration bringing together Cure51’s research on exceptional long-term Cancer survivors and the expertise of Nelson Dusetti’s team at CRCM - Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille, specialized in pancreatic Cancer biology and patient-derived preclinical modeling, in close interaction with the Institut Paoli-Calmettes.
Shared Ambition, Different Ends of The Spectrum
Our shared ambition is clear: to understand why a very small group of patients survives far beyond statistical expectations and how to make that exceptional biology accessible to many more.
While Cure51 investigates the molecular and clinical profiles of patients who defy odds, Nelson Dusetti’s group focuses on the opposite biological extremity: tumors that are intrinsically resistant to multiple lines of therapy.
By studying these two ends of the spectrum, exceptional survival versus multidrug resistance, we aim to identify the biological programs that drive treatment escape and, crucially, the specific vulnerabilities that can be targeted to counteract it.
This approach goes beyond correlation. It combines large-scale computational discovery with functional validation in patient-derived experimental systems: primary cultures, organoids and xenografts allowing us to test whether identified targets can truly shift tumor behavior toward a “long-survivor-like” state.
Access to advanced experimental platforms and a unique biobank of more than 500 patient-derived preclinical models enables rapid and clinically relevant validation of therapeutic hypotheses.
Computational Biology and Experimental Validation
This collaboration brings together computational biology and experimental validation to transform research findings into actionable treatments for patients. By integrating survivor biology, transcriptomic analysis and preclinical functional testing, this partnership aims at transforming biological insight into actionable therapeutic strategies for patients facing the most aggressive forms of pancreatic Cancer.
Updated: March 10, 2026
