EPICA – DIPG, a European consortium, coordinated by the Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu Barcelona (IRSJD), is beginning a five-year project to test an innovative immunotherapy for Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG), a highly aggressive paediatric brain tumour, in a multi-country Phase I clinical trial.

Beyond the clinical study itself, the project combines two additional components: a companion diagnostic strategy for minimally invasive monitoring of immune and treatment responses, and a scalable cross-border framework for manufacturing and delivering advanced therapies. The consortium will assess whether the treatment can be produced at a central facility and supplied it to hospitals across multiple countries, contributing to make these complex and costly treatments more accessible in the future.

Other partners in the consortium include Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital (IRCCS) in Rome and the Princess Máxima Center in Utrecht, together with three patient organisations from each participating country, as well as experts in medicinal regulation, and health technology assessment.