Korean Cancer Study Group

What Korean Cancer Study Group does

Korean Cancer Study Group (KCSG) is a nonprofit incorporated association (사단법인) founded in 1998 that operates as Korea's leading academic cooperative group for multi-institutional cancer clinical trials. KCSG coordinates investigator-initiated oncology trials through a national network of approximately 900 clinical oncologists across 110 member hospitals and institutes, organized into 11 specialized disease committees covering breast, colorectal, gynecologic, genitourinary, head & neck/esophageal, hepatobiliary/pancreatic, lung, lymphoma, palliative care, stomach, and rare cancers. Its core operating infrastructure is the Data Center, which delivers clinical operations services including study set-up, central coordination, IRB/MFDS applications, site monitoring, data management, statistics, TMF management, and vendor management, compliant with ICH-GCP and Korean GCP regulations.

The organization's product and service portfolio spans investigator-initiated clinical trials, a Clinical Trial Search Platform, the Data Center, the Trial DataHub, and recurring educational programs (Methodology Workshop, Oncology Academy, Consensus Conference, Annual Meeting). Revenue is generated primarily from clinical trial support services (82% of FY2024 revenue), with secondary streams from technology and information exchange services (6.7%), institutional and policy research (6.3%), membership dues (~0.4% direct), educational events, and donations. Pharma partnerships span a broad roster of domestic and multinational sponsors including Roche, Amgen, Takeda, Johnson & Johnson, Astellas, Ono Pharmaceutical, Daiichi Sankyo, MSD, and others. Internationally, KCSG maintains formal cooperative partnerships with six major oncology research groups: BIG, NCIC CTG, ECOG-ACRIN, EORTC, JBCRG, and TRIO, enabling global trial participation and protocol co-development.

KCSG operates as a private, nonprofit entity headquartered in Seoul with no public listing, parent company, or external equity ownership. FY2024 revenue totaled 71.295 billion KRW (~$50-53M USD), down 4.42% year-over-year, while total expenditure declined 18.71% to 67.336 billion KRW. The organization has produced 197+ peer-reviewed publications including practice-changing studies in NEJM, Lancet Oncology, and JCO, with the YOUNG-PEARL trial directly influencing FDA label expansion for palbociclib in premenopausal HR+/HER2- metastatic breast cancer. Governance is led by President Jin Seok Ahn and a Board of Directors, with operational leadership across 11 disease committees and specialized functions (Protocol Review, IDMC, Planning, Education, External Cooperation, Public Relations, Translational Research, Quality Assurance, Fundraising, Data Center).

Name

Korean Cancer Study Group

Legal name

Korea Cancer Center Research Institute

Website

https://kcsg.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Korean Cancer Study Group (KCSG) is a nonprofit academic cooperative group founded in 1998 that runs multi-institutional cancer clinical trials across 11 disease committees, serving ~900 oncologists in 110 Korean hospitals with Data Center operations, international research partnerships, and educational programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Oncology Clinical Research Services

NAICS

Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (54), Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171), Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Site Network Operators & SMOs (HLAGACAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Clinical Trial Site Operations & Study Coordination (HLAGACAE), Clinical Site Start-Up & Activation (Regulatory/Ethics/Contracts) (HLAGACAC), Clinical Operations & Monitoring FSP (CRA/CTM/Start-up) (HLAGAOAA), Clinical Trial Monitoring Support (On-site/Remote) (HLAGACAG), Knowledge Management & KCS Programs (BPAEAJAJ)

Keywords

• Cancer clinical trials
• Oncology research services
• Multi-center clinical studies
• Investigator-initiated trials
• Clinical trial coordination

Headquarters

HQ city

Yeoksamdong

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Others

Revenue model

1. Clinical Trial Support Services: Primary revenue stream from conducting multi-institutional cancer clinical trials. In 2024, this accounted for 82% of total revenue (71.295 billion KRW total revenue)
2. Technology and Information Exchange Services: Technical information exchange and collaboration services, accounting for 6.7% of total revenue
3. Institutional and Policy Research: Policy research services contributing 6.3% of total revenue
4. Membership Dues: Annual membership fees from approximately 900 members from 110 institutes or hospitals
5. Donations: Charitable donations from individuals and corporations supporting cancer research activities

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

KCSG is a nonprofit clinical research organization that designs, coordinates, and executes multi-institutional investigator-initiated cancer clinical trials across South Korea. Through its Data Center and 11 disease-specific committees, it provides end-to-end clinical trial operations including study setup, regulatory applications (IRB/MFDS), central coordination, site monitoring, data management, statistics, and quality assurance, while also delivering educational programs and maintaining a Clinical Trial Search Platform.

Product overview

Korean Cancer Study Group (KCSG) is a non-profit clinical research organization that serves as a nationwide leader in multi-institutional cancer clinical trials. Established in 1998, KCSG operates as a network-based organization comprising 11 disease-specific committees covering all major cancer types (breast, colorectal, gynecologic, genitourinary, head & neck/esophageal, hepatobiliary/pancreatic, lung, lymphoma, palliative care, stomach, and rare cancers). The organization provides a comprehensive suite of services including clinical trial design and coordination, data management through its Data Center, quality assurance, education and training programs (Oncology Academy, Methodology Workshop, Consensus Conference), and maintains a network of approximately 900 members from 110 institutes/hospitals across Korea.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Clinical Trial Search Platform (임상연구검색) A web-based platform enabling search and discovery of cancer clinical trials conducted by KCSG member institutions across multiple cancer types, used by oncologists, patients, and researchers.
• Data Center (Clinical Operations Service) A clinical operations organization providing high-quality clinical operational services including study setup, central coordination for multi-center trials, IRB and MFDS applications, site monitoring, data management, statistics, and vendor management for IP management.
• Oncology Academy An educational program providing comprehensive training in oncology including diagnostic principles, treatment mechanisms, clinical trial designs, and toxicity management, delivered as a 2-day program with online and in-person options for members and general oncologists.
• Methodology Workshop An annual workshop designed for young researchers and clinical trial beginners providing hands-on training in research methodology, protocol development, and statistical analysis.
• Consensus Conference An annual conference bringing together experts to develop and disseminate clinical guidelines and consensus statements for cancer treatment, covering topics such as lung cancer, head and neck cancer, and esophageal cancer, with CME credits.
• KCSG Mobile Application A mobile application providing access to KCSG services, clinical trial information, and educational content for members and cancer patients.
• Trial DataHub A data platform for managing trial data, enabling member access to clinical trial information, participant data, and research collaboration tools.
• KCSG Annual Meeting Annual conference event bringing together KCSG members to share research findings, discuss clinical developments, and foster collaboration in cancer research.

Quantifiable outcome

• 65 multi-institutional clinical trials conducted
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Breast International Group (BIG)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational cooperative partnership for breast cancer clinical research, enabling KCSG to participate in global multi-center clinical trials and contribute to international research standards in oncology.
• Canadian Cancer Trials Group (NCIC CTG)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational research collaboration for cancer clinical trials, facilitating knowledge exchange and joint research initiatives between Korean and Canadian oncology research networks.
• ECOG-ACRIN Cancer Research GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with ECOG-ACRIN enabling participation in US-based cancer clinical trials and providing access to international research protocols and methodologies.
• European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean partnership for cancer research collaboration, expanding KCSG's international research network and enabling participation in European clinical trial protocols.
• Japan Breast Cancer Research Group (JBCRG)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional Asian partnership with Japanese breast cancer research group, facilitating regional collaboration and data sharing in Asian cancer populations.
• Translational Research in Oncology (TRIO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational partnership focused on translational cancer research, supporting KCSG's mission to advance clinical and translational cancer research through international collaboration.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves1 record

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC): Largest European academic clinical cancer research organization. Comparable in mission to KCSG but operates at much broader geographic and disease scope; existing KCSG partnership underscores alignment.

Direct peers

• SWOG Cancer Research Network: Major U.S. cooperative oncology group running multi-center clinical trials across academic and community sites. Functionally equivalent to KCSG in mission, scale, and disease-committee structure.
• Sarah Cannon Research Institute: One of the largest U.S. community oncology trial networks, focused on Phase I–III oncology. Comparable as a multi-site oncology trial operator, though commercially structured.
• Canadian Cancer Trials Group (CCTG): Canada's national cooperative oncology trials group. Comparable in structure to KCSG (academic-led, multi-institutional, international partnerships) and an existing KCSG partner.
• National Cancer Center (Korea): Korea's national cancer specialty hospital and research institute, operating investigator-initiated oncology trials. Highly comparable to KCSG as a domestic Korean oncology research organization, though it is a single institution rather than a multi-site network.
• ECOG-ACRIN Cancer Research Group: U.S.-based multi-institutional cooperative group running NCI-sponsored oncology trials. Directly comparable to KCSG in mission and operating model; KCSG is already a strategic partner, making it the closest analog internationally.
• US Oncology Research (McKesson): Largest U.S. community-based oncology site management organization running investigator-initiated and sponsored trials. Comparable in function (multi-site trial operations) but operates commercially rather than as a nonprofit cooperative.
• NRG Oncology: U.S. NCI-sponsored cooperative group focused on multi-modality oncology trials. Comparable as a multi-institutional investigator-initiated trial organization with disease-specific committees.

Emerging players

• Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium: U.S. academic consortium of cancer centers running investigator-initiated trials. Comparable to KCSG's cooperative-group structure but smaller and earlier-stage.

Regional players

• Japan Clinical Oncology Group (JCOG): Japan's leading multi-institutional cancer clinical trials group. Closest geographic analog to KCSG in Asia with a near-identical cooperative-group operating model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/korean-cancer-study-group

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 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 Korean Cancer Study Group