The appointment follows a successful tenure as interim Scientific Directors, during which they strengthened St. Anna CCRI’s research strategy and fostered interdisciplinary excellence. The appointment of Dr. Tomazou and Dr. Taschner-Mandl marks an exciting new chapter in St. Anna CCRI’s unwavering work toward a future in which all childhood cancers will become curable.
“Our goal is to translate scientific discoveries into tangible benefits for young patients,” says Dr. Sabine Taschner-Mandl. “By integrating innovative diagnostics and precision therapies into clinical practice, we aim to address the urgent needs of children and adolescents with cancer. St. Anna CCRI will continue to be a driving force in clinical translation and precision medicine.”
“Understanding how pediatric cancers develop and progress is key to developing new treatment strategies,” adds Dr. Eleni Tomazou. “We are committed to fostering excellence and strengthening St. Anna CCRI’s position as an international leader in pediatric cancer research. Together with the St. Anna Children’s Hospital, we will build bridges between biomedical research and clinical care to improve survival and quality-of-life for young patients.”
Dr. Eleni Tomazou has led a research group at St. Anna CCRI since 2018, focusing on pediatric sarcomas – a group of rare and aggressive tumor affecting children and young adults. Her research seeks to generate insights that can be translated into more precise and less toxic therapies for these challenging cancers. She earned her PhD at the Wellcome Sanger Institute (Cambridge, UK) and the University of Cambridge (UK) and completed her postdoctoral training at the Broad Institute and Harvard Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology (Cambridge, USA). She has received several prestigious awards, including an ERC Consolidator Grant. She is also Assistant Professor of Sarcoma Biology at the Medical University of Vienna.
Dr. Sabine Taschner-Mandl heads an interdisciplinary research group at St. Anna CCRI focusing on high-risk neuroblastoma, cancer metastasis, and the development of diagnostic and prognostic markers for precision oncology. Her team uses advanced single-cell, imaging and AI technologies to explore tumor cell plasticity and the microenvironment. She earned her PhD at the University of Vienna (Austria) and completed postdoctoral training at the Medical University of Vienna (Austria) and at several leading international institutions. She holds leadership roles in major pediatric oncology networks, including the Executive Board and Biology Committee of SIOPEN and the International Neuroblastoma Risk Group (INRG).
“The new scientific leadership duo – with its commitment to scientific excellence, collaboration and teamwork, and clinical impact – will continue the successful path of St. Anna CCRI and bring new momentum,” says Univ.-Prof. DDr. Caroline Hutter, Head of St. Anna CCRI, Medical Director of St. Anna Children’s Hospital and Professor of Pediatric Oncology at the Medical University of Vienna.
The Board of St. Anna CCRI adds: “Eleni Tomazou and Sabine Taschner-Mandl have already shaped the institute in their role as interim Scientific Directors and set important strategic directions. They now assume full responsibility for leading St. Anna CCRI toward a great future.”
Under the leadership of the new Scientific Directors, St. Anna CCRI will expand its commitment to precision oncology, innovative diagnostics, and biomedical research on childhood cancers, and it will strengthen its links with the St. Anna Children’s Hospital and its embedding in European and global research networks dedicated to improving treatment for kids with cancer.
Contact
St. Anna Kinderkrebsforschung GmbH
Zimmermannplatz 10
1090 Vienna
Austria
T: +43 1 40470 0
F: +43 1 40470 7150