Cancer Trials Ireland

What Cancer Trials Ireland does

Cancer Trials Ireland (formerly ICORG — All-Ireland Cooperative Oncology Research Group) is a not-for-profit registered charity established in 1996 and headquartered at RCSI House, 121 St Stephen's Green, Dublin. The organization operates Ireland's national academic-sponsored cancer clinical trial infrastructure, coordinating a portfolio of over 100 active oncology trials across 18-19 hospital-based Cancer Clinical Trials Units covering 12 disease areas (breast, lung, genitourinary, gastrointestinal, gynaecological, lymphoma and blood cancers, head and neck, CNS, sarcoma, melanoma, paediatric, and basket trials). It holds the participation of 98% of all cancer-treating specialists in Ireland as members and since founding has run more than 420 trials involving 25,000+ patients. Its core operating platform is full-lifecycle trial management — protocol development, feasibility and site selection, regulatory and ethics submissions, contract negotiation, data management, biometrics, pharmacovigilance, and quality oversight — delivered both as an academic sponsor of investigator-initiated trials and as a contractual service partner to pharmaceutical companies and international collaborative groups including EORTC, BIG, ANZUP, and NRG.

The revenue model is a mix of professional-services fees from pharma sponsors and international research groups (described as generating "over half" of income), recurring grant funding from the Health Research Board and the Irish Cancer Society (approximately €1 million per year), and philanthropic donations including a €2.6 million Pat Smullen Pancreatic Cancer Fund grant in 2019. Patient participation is free and patient-facing services carry no direct price. Supporting infrastructure includes a National Cancer Trial Search Tool powered by ONCOassist, a Molecular Tumour Board program for precision oncology case review (57 MTBs, 144 cases, 20 institutions by mid-2024), a Patient Consultants Committee embedding lived experience into trial design, and Disease Specific Sub-Groups that meet three times a year across each cancer type. The organization is governed by an independent board chaired by Deirdre Somers and led operationally since June 2025 by CEO Angela Clayton-Lea; key sites include Beaumont Hospital, St James's, St Vincent's, the Mater, Cork University Hospital, University Hospital Galway, and Children's Health Ireland at Crumlin.

Name

Cancer Trials Ireland

Legal name

Cancer Trials Ireland

Website

https://cancertrials.ie

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cancer Trials Ireland is Ireland's national not-for-profit academic sponsor coordinating 100+ oncology clinical trials across 18-19 hospital sites, serving patients, pharmaceutical sponsors, and international collaborative research groups (EORTC, BIG, ANZUP, NRG) since 1996.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Clinical Research Services

NAICS

Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714), Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (541690)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Clinical Trial Site Operations & Study Coordination (HLAGACAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Clinical Development (Phase I–III Trial Design & Execution) (HLAIALAE), Site & Investigator Platforms (Site Payments, Feasibility, Activation) (HLACAOAJ), Molecular Tumor Boards & Clinical Interpretation Services (HLAAANAD), Disease-Specific Research & Support (e.g., Cancer, Diabetes, ALS) (BPAGACAA)

Keywords

• Cancer clinical trials
• Academic trial sponsorship
• Oncology research coordination
• Clinical trial management
• Investigator initiated trials

Headquarters

HQ city

Dublin

HQ country

Ireland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Healthcare Services to Pharmaceutical Companies: Generate over half of income from cancer trials services provided to pharmaceutical companies and international research groups, including site management, monitoring, data management, and regulatory services.
2. Government and NGO Funding: Partly funded by the Health Research Board (HRB) and the Irish Cancer Society (approximately €1 million per year from Irish Cancer Society). Funding also supports investigator-initiated trials and infrastructure.
3. Philanthropic Donations: Receives donations from members of the public and specific fundraising initiatives. 100% of donations are used to make clinical research options available for patients in Ireland. Notable donation: €2.6 million Pat Smullen Pancreatic Cancer Fund.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Cancer Trials Ireland is Ireland's national academic-sponsored clinical trials infrastructure for oncology. The organization coordinates and manages cancer clinical trials from protocol development and regulatory submissions through site management, data management, pharmacovigilance, and statistical analysis, serving pharmaceutical companies, international research groups (EORTC, BIG, ANZUP, NRG), and the Irish medical community across 19 research centres and over 100 active trials.

Product overview

Cancer Trials Ireland operates a comprehensive clinical research platform for cancer trials in Ireland. The organization serves as the leading academic sponsor for Investigator-Initiated Trials and coordinates international collaborative trials. Key offerings include a Trial Search Tool (powered by ONCOassist), a Collaboration Hub providing end-to-end trial management services (protocol development, regulatory submissions, pharmacovigilance, data management, and biometrics), a Molecular Tumor Board for precision oncology case discussions, and Patient Consultants Committee for patient involvement. The portfolio includes over 100 active trials across 12 disease areas. The organization also provides central feasibility services and education through its podcast and DSSG meetings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Trial Search Tool A search tool enabling patients and clinicians to find cancer clinical trials by cancer type, location, phase, gene mutation, and treatment stage. Powered by ONCOassist integration and accessible to oncology professionals and patients.
• Collaboration Hub A centralized service offering providing end-to-end clinical trial management services for industry sponsors and collaborative partners, including protocol development, feasibility and site selection, regulatory and ethics submissions, contract negotiation, budget development, project management, site management, data management, statistics, quality oversight, and pharmacovigilance.
• Molecular Tumor Board (MTB) A multi-disciplinary virtual meeting where anonymized patient cases are discussed based on clinical information and genetic sequencing reports. Provides clinical decision support for doctors and connects treating clinicians with national and international experts in precision oncology through next-generation sequencing integration.
• Cancer Trial Sponsorship Services Academic sponsorship services for Investigator-Initiated Trials (IITs), providing legal, financial, and insurance obligations management along with expert regulatory support throughout the trial process in Ireland.
• Central Feasibility Service A national central point of contact for feasibility assessments for cancer clinical trials in Ireland, providing country-level feasibility review, pre-feasibility identification of sites, confidentiality agreement management, feasibility questionnaire development and distribution, and site selection recommendations for industry sponsors.
• Pharmacovigilance Services Continuous safety monitoring of patients on clinical trials including adverse event collection, SAE reporting, monthly Medical Oversight Meetings, Quarterly Safety Monitoring Committee reviews, and regulatory reporting to the Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA) and European Medicines Agency (EMA).

Quantifiable outcome

• More than 25,000 patients have participated in over 420 cancer trials since 1996
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and strategic.

• RochecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Initial sponsor of the Irish Molecular Tumour Board pilot project from November 2020. Established the educational MTB program that has now grown to include solid tumour and haematology-oncology case reviews.
• EORTC (European Organisation for the Research and Treatment of Cancer)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational collaborative research group with whom Cancer Trials Ireland works to bring European cancer clinical trials to Irish patients.
• BIG (Breast International Group)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational breast cancer research network enabling Irish participation in global breast cancer clinical trials.
• ANZUP (Australian and New Zealand Urogenital and Prostate Cancer Trials Group)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational genitourinary cancer research group enabling cross-border trial collaboration.
• NRG OncologymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational cancer research organization with multiple trials open in Ireland through Cancer Trials Ireland coordination.
• EMTBN (European Molecular Tumour Board Network)strategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean network providing consensus on MTBs and contributing to real-world data through European registry development.
• Blood Cancer Network Ireland (BCNI)strategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational clinical research network for blood cancer patients offering early stage clinical trials and establishing biobank and registry. Funded by Irish Cancer Society and Science Foundation Ireland.
• RCSI (Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland)strategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerRCSI hosts Cancer Trials Ireland headquarters and provides academic collaboration including Prof Leonie Young's Endocrine Oncology Research Group partnership.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Regional players

• NRG Oncology: NRG Oncology is a US nonprofit clinical trials network focused on cancer research. It is comparable because it coordinates multi-institution oncology trials and connects academic investigators, hospitals, and patients to cancer studies.
• Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology: The Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology is a US cooperative oncology research group conducting cancer prevention, treatment, and quality-of-life trials. It is comparable because it coordinates academic cancer trials across institutions and disease areas.
• Cancer Trials Australia: Cancer Trials Australia supports oncology clinical trials through a hospital and research-site network in Australia. It is comparable because it provides trial coordination and site-network access for cancer studies, albeit in a different geography.
• ECOG-ACRIN Cancer Research Group: ECOG-ACRIN is a US-based cancer research group running biomarker, imaging, and therapeutic oncology trials. It is comparable through its multi-institution academic trial network and oncology-focused clinical research model.
• Canadian Cancer Trials Group: Canadian Cancer Trials Group is a national academic oncology cooperative trials organization based in Canada. It is comparable as a country-level cancer trial infrastructure coordinating multi-site studies and investigator-led oncology research.
• SWOG Cancer Research Network: SWOG is a US National Cancer Institute-supported cancer clinical trials network. It is comparable as a large cooperative oncology research network that runs multi-site trials and supports practice-changing cancer research.
• ANZUP Cancer Trials Group: ANZUP is an Australia/New Zealand cooperative group focused on genitourinary cancer clinical trials. It is comparable as a nonprofit oncology trials network, though narrower by disease area and serving a different region.

Emerging players

• Breast International Group: Breast International Group is an international nonprofit network focused on breast cancer research and clinical trials. It is comparable as a collaborative oncology trial network, though it is disease-specific rather than a national multi-cancer infrastructure.

Broad incumbents

• ICON plc: ICON is a global contract research organization headquartered in Ireland that provides clinical trial management, regulatory, data, and site services to biopharma sponsors. It is comparable on sponsor-facing trial execution capabilities, but is a much broader commercial CRO rather than a nonprofit oncology network.

Direct peers

• EORTC: EORTC is a European nonprofit cancer clinical research organization running international oncology trials. It is highly comparable because Cancer Trials Ireland also coordinates academic oncology trials and works with international collaborative groups across multiple cancer types.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat7 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cancertrials_ie
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@cancertrialsireland
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cancertrialsireland/posts/?feedView=all
• Instagraminstagram.com/cancertrialsireland

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles17 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cancer Trials Ireland