On Monday, May 19th, the EOSC4Cancer team held the second round of our sustainability workshop titled “Sustaining Impact: Building the Future of Cancer Research Data in Europe”. 

The first session of the workshop was dedicated to an overview of EU Research Infrastructures (RIs) sustaining EOSC4Cancer outcomes, given by each Research Initiative’s representative. Partners from ELIXIR, BBMRI, ECRIN, and EATRIS presented each initiative’s contribution to EOSC4Cancer, collaborative efforts with other RIs, and their plans to sustain and extend the outputs. Ongoing sustainability challenges which were discussed included the need for continued expansion of federated data sharing environments, leveraging pan-european networks, and building upon the excellent work being done by other EU initiatives.

The second session highlighted the expected impact of EHDS on Cancer research and its links to Health Data Access Bodies (HDAB) Digital Business Capabilities. The discussion thereafter focused on compliance with the EHDS, integration of federated tools, and the governance challenges. The discussions ended with some final reflections from all participants. One of the main challenges to be tackled will be ensuring a seamless handover and integration of our tools, services, and workflows into follow-up EU cancer initiatives, such as UNCAN.eu, CanSERV, and upcoming EHDS pilots. Focus will be given to obtaining any support needed from the European Commission or national nodes to sustain federated, cancer-focused data ecosystems.

We thank each partner, collaborator, and project member who took part in these sessions and contributed their insights to this conversation. We will continue working together to guarantee that EOSC4Cancer continues making an impact in the EU cancer landscape, even beyond its project lifetime.