Swiss Cancer Center Léman

What Swiss Cancer Center Léman does

The Swiss Cancer Center Léman (SCCL) is a non-profit academic cancer research alliance headquartered at the AGORA Cancer Research Center on the Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV) campus in Lausanne, Switzerland. Formally established in 2016 following a 2013 declaration of intent among CHUV, UNIL, and EPFL, and expanded with HUG and UNIGE that same year, SCCL federates five western Swiss academic and clinical institutions and brings together over 80 research groups across fundamental, translational, and clinical cancer research. The organization positions itself as one of the few veritably integrated cancer centers in Europe, with 200 members currently housed in the five-storey AGORA translational research facility inaugurated in October 2018.

SCCL operates an integrated portfolio of programs and services rather than discrete commercial products. Core offerings include the Molecular Tumor Board — a weekly video-conferenced case-review forum co-hosted by CHUV and HUG that has reviewed over 1,200 patient cases and proposed clinical trials or off-label treatments to over half — and a joint Clinical Trials Platform listing more than 100 active trials open across Lausanne and Geneva. The alliance also runs Phase I/II Clinical Investigation Units for oncology, Centers of Excellence organized by tumor type, the Center for Experimental Therapeutics, and signature research programs spanning immunotherapy, tumor microenvironment and biology, molecular imaging and nuclear medicine, precision radiotherapy, precision oncology, and computational oncology. The Réseau Romand d'Oncologie (RRO) provides regional multi-omics analysis and a regional database supporting precision oncology decision-making.

SCCL's business model is that of an academic research consortium with no publicly disclosed pricing. Funding flows from member institution contributions, competitive government grants (including a CHF 3 million SNSF Sinergia grant in November 2023), foundation support (notably the ISREC Foundation), and clinical trial collaborations with industry partners. Patient care is delivered through partner university hospitals under standard Swiss healthcare billing systems. The consortium primarily serves cancer patients across the Suisse Romande region of western Switzerland (an estimated population of 2 million, of which 40% face lifetime cancer risk), along with researchers, clinicians, and industry collaborators across the alliance's network.

Name

Swiss Cancer Center Léman

Legal name

Swiss Cancer Center Léman

Website

https://sccl.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Swiss Cancer Center Léman is a non-profit cancer research alliance federating five western Swiss academic and clinical institutions, integrating fundamental, translational, and clinical oncology research across 80+ research groups and serving cancer patients across the Suisse Romande region through clinical trials and precision oncology programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Translational Cancer Research

NAICS

Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171), Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Medical Laboratories (621511)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Services-Medical Laboratories (8071), Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Molecular Tumor Boards & Clinical Interpretation Services (HLAAANAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Specialty Therapeutic-Area CROs (e.g., oncology/rare disease) (HLAGAAAL), KOL Engagement & Medical Education (Advisory Boards/CME Support) (HLAGALAM), Hospital-Integrated Cancer Centers (Acute Oncology Programs) (HLAFAAAM)

Keywords

• Translational cancer research
• Clinical oncology trials
• Molecular tumor boards
• Precision oncology services
• Academic research consortium

Headquarters

HQ city

Lausanne

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Research Funding and Grants: SCCL operates as a research consortium funded through partner institutions (CHUV, HUG, EPFL, UNIL, UNIGE), government grants including SNSF Sinergia grants (CHF 3 million awarded), and foundation support (ISREC Foundation). Additional revenue derived from clinical trial collaborations with industry partners.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

SCCL is a non-profit academic cancer research alliance that federates fundamental, translational, and clinical cancer research across five western Swiss academic and clinical institutions. Its core offerings include translational research programs (immunotherapy, tumour microenvironment, precision oncology, computational oncology), the AGORA Cancer Research Center, the Molecular Tumour Board case-review service, the joint Clinical Trials Platform, the Center for Experimental Therapeutics, Phase I/II Clinical Investigation Units, and tumor-type Centers of Excellence delivered through partner university hospitals CHUV and HUG.

Product overview

The Swiss Cancer Center Léman (SCCL) is a cancer research alliance rather than a traditional product company. It provides an integrated ecosystem of research facilities, clinical services, and collaborative programs across five academic institutions (CHUV, HUG, EPFL, UNIL, UNIGE). The core offerings include the AGORA Cancer Center (translational research platform), Molecular Tumour Board (case review service), Clinical Trials Platform (trial registry), Center for Experimental Therapeutics, Phase I/II Clinical Investigation Units, and Centers of Excellence. These services work together to enable bench-to-bedside transfer of cancer research, from fundamental investigation through clinical innovation and patient care.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 1,200 molecular tumor board cases reviewed with treatments proposed for over half
• +2 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• CHUV - Lausanne University HospitalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounding member and key clinical partner providing oncology department leadership, clinical trial infrastructure, and patient care. Head of Department of Oncology Pr George Coukos serves as co-director of SCCL.
• EPFL - Swiss Federal Institute of Technology LausannecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounding member providing research excellence, home to ISREC (Swiss Institute for Experimental Cancer Research), EPFL Center for Cancer Science, and EPFL Professor Douglas Hanahan (Foreign Member of Royal Society).
• HUG - Geneva University HospitalscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounding member since 2016, providing second major university hospital clinical site with Head of Department of Oncology Pr Olivier Michielin, Phase I/II clinical research unit, and precision oncology service.
• UNIGE - University of GenevacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounding member since 2016, home to Center of Translational Research in Onco-haematology (CRTOH), recipient of CHF 3 million SNSF Sinergia grant. Currently ranked 59th in Shanghai Academic Ranking.
• UNIL - University of LausannecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounding member, home to Faculty of Biology and Medicine, Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research Lausanne, and Johanna Joyce's tumor microenvironment research. Currently ranked 101st in Shanghai Academic Ranking.
• Ludwig Institute for Cancer ResearchcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization with branches at both UNIL (Lausanne) and Oxford. Includes Director Pr George Coukos and Professor Yang Shi as keynote speakers. Active in funding and supporting cancer research across SCCL institutions.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Institut Curie: Institut Curie is a French integrated cancer research and care center operating its own hospital and research center with multidisciplinary tumor boards and translational programs — directly comparable to SCCL's CHUV/HUG hospital-integrated model.
• European Institute of Oncology (IEO): IEO is a Milan-based comprehensive cancer center combining research and clinical oncology with strong translational programs and precision oncology services — directly comparable to SCCL's integrated model in a European academic setting.
• Gustave Roussy: Gustave Roussy is a leading European comprehensive cancer center combining research, clinical care, and translational programs — the same integrated cancer center archetype SCCL explicitly positions against, with similar Molecular Tumor Board, Phase I/II, and translational research capabilities.
• Karolinska Comprehensive Cancer Center: Karolinska CCC is a Swedish comprehensive cancer center integrating research and clinical care with strong precision oncology, early-phase trial, and molecular tumor board capabilities — comparable to SCCL in scope and structure within a similar-size national ecosystem.
• National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg: NCT Heidelberg is a German integrated cancer center partnering DKFZ and Heidelberg University Hospital with translational research, early-phase trials, and molecular tumor boards — the closest direct structural analog to SCCL's multi-institutional hospital-integrated model.
• Institut Jules Bordet: Institut Jules Bordet is a Belgian comprehensive cancer center affiliated with the Université Libre de Bruxelles with research, translational, and clinical programs including molecular tumor boards — comparable to SCCL as a European academic integrated cancer center of similar regional scale.
• Vall d'Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO): VHIO is a Spanish translational oncology research center integrated with Vall d'Hebron University Hospital, running early-phase trials, molecular tumor boards, and precision oncology programs — a direct functional peer to SCCL's CHUV/HUG-integrated translational model.
• CRUK Cambridge Centre: CRUK Cambridge Centre is a UK Cancer Research UK-funded comprehensive cancer center at the University of Cambridge integrating research, clinical trials, and molecular tumor boards — a structural analog to SCCL's multi-institutional alliance model.

Broad incumbents

• MD Anderson Cancer Center: MD Anderson is a globally leading US cancer center with research, clinical, and translational programs at materially larger scale — a broad incumbent reference point against which SCCL's integrated European model competes for talent, industry trials, and reputation.
• German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ): DKFZ is Germany's national cancer research center with broad programs in oncology, immunology, and translational research; it operates at materially larger scale and serves as the reference European public-sector cancer research incumbent that SCCL competes with for talent and grants.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Swiss Cancer Center Léman