Institute for Cancer Research

Kjetil Taskén
Institute head

Institute for Cancer Research has since its foundation in 1954 played a central role within the field of cancer research both in Norway and internationally. The Institute has seven research departments and more than 380 employees. About 70% of the employees and projects are externally funded. Read more

See introductory video with welcome to the ICR 

See full video covering all of ICR and its Departments 

Publication overview

Annual reports

Current news and events

Project funded through prestigious programme:Norwegian researchers awarded major grant to uncover how cells remember starvation

Enserink and Knævelsrud
Enserink and Knævelsrud

A team of researchers led by Jorrit Enserink from Oslo University Hospital and Helene Knævelsrud from the University of Oslo has been awarded 40 million NOK from the Research Council of Norway to investigate a fundamental biological question: Can cells remember being starved, and does that memory change how they behave in the future?

The project, called Total Recall (Learn–Recall–Forget: Causal Circuits of Starvation Memory for Population Coherence in Homeostasis and Development), was funded through the prestigious "Toppforskere" programme, which supports research teams with the potential to become world-leading in their field.

From the UiO Growth House -Impact Breakfast May 27th:Dual-use – Stepping up for preparedness

Preparedness has become more relevant, along with solutions that can be used in health care as well as in defence – so called dual-use technologies. The European Defence Fund is one of the relevant funding sources for researchers and startups.
At this breakfast event, you will meet researchers and startups developing solutions ranging from protection against microbiological agents to smart textiles

Time and place: May 27, 2026 8:00 AM–10:00 AM, Faros, Toppsenteret, Oslo Science Park, Gaustadalléen 21, Oslo

Visit homepage for programme and registration (uio.no)

First immunotherapy trial for the soft-tissue sarcoma MPNST, an orphan disease

A collaborative clinical study (PI: Tormod K. Guren) at OUS reports a long-lasting response to immune check point inhibition in 1 of 8 patients with malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors (MPNSTs). Multiplex fluorescent immunohistochemistry showed high tumor density of PD-1+CD8+ T cells in tumors with treatment response. In addition, mixed response in a 2nd patient was associated with high PD-L1 expression.
This study was possible due to a dedicated multidisciplinary collaboration across divisions at OUS, and was recently published in npjPrecision Oncology by Sveen A, Bergsland CH, Niederdorfer B, Berstad AE, Bjerkehagen B, Boye K, Guren TK and Lothe RA.

Publication in Nature Communications:AI-powered system matches cancer patients to clinical trials

Nakken (left) and Hovig
Nakken (left) and Hovig

Precision cancer medicine depends upon getting patients enrolled in the right clinical trials at the right time. A study led by Majd Abdallah and Macha Nikolski (CNRS, University of Bordeaux), in collaboration with Sigve Nakken and Eivind Hovig (Institute for Cancer Research), introduces TrialMatchAI — an AI-powered software system designed to automatically match cancer patients to relevant clinical trials.

Link collection - current news:News stories involving OUS researchers

Announcement from inven2 - deadline May 1st:The Innovation Award 2026

The Innovation Award, organized annually by Inven2, seeks to showcase and reward the most innovative inventions from the brightest researchers. Inven2 aims to bridge the gap between research and the public, transforming cutting-edge ideas into products and services that benefit society.
If you are employed at the University of Oslo, Oslo University Hospital or a hospital in the South-Eastern Norway Regional Health Authority and have an invention, we invite you to participate in the Innovation Award. The winner receives 300 000 NOK, alongside expert guidance and support to help bring the invention to market.