Lola Manterola, President and Co-founder, Cancer Research Innovation in Science (CRIS), Spain; Trustee and Co-founder, CRIS Cancer Foundation, UK; Vice-President and Co-founder of CRIS Cancer, France.
This interview was developed in collaboration with European Medical Journal (EMJ), with editorial support and medical writing provided by EMJ.
- What does the theme ‘From Subjects to Stakeholders’ mean to you personally?
To me, the theme ‘From Subjects to Stakeholders’ is the story of my life. Seventeen years ago, I was a 'subject' in a clinical trial that gave me the 'second chance' I needed when conventional treatments had failed. This experience taught me that patients are the heart of the active ecosystem in the fight against cancer. A 'stakeholder' is no longer a passive recipient of care; they are active partners who drive the scientific agenda. Through the Cancer Research Innovation in Science (CRIS) Cancer Foundation, I have seen how a community of over 100,000 members and hundreds of companies can unite to support research of excellence, investing 80 million EUR to date. Today, being a stakeholder means having a seat at the table where decisions are made, including serving on the Boards of Trustees of top research centres, like the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO), Madrid, Spain, and Vall d'Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO), Barcelona, Spain, to represent the voice of patients and families.
- Can you share what first motivated you to advocate for stronger patient partnership in cancer care?
It was the realisation that scientific breakthroughs are meaningless if they do not reach the bedside. A defining moment was the case of a 48-year-old patient with lymphoma waiting for a therapy that had worked for others in clinical trials, but was not yet approved by the authorities in Spain. This gap between science and access motivated us to go to the Spanish Congress and Senate to advocate for the universal and equitable availability of innovative treatments. Thanks to this collective action, we contributed to the approval of advanced CAR-T therapies and the updating of the National Plan for Advanced Therapies. Witnessing the patient receive this treatment and seeing hundreds of others benefit showed us that patient advocacy is a powerful force for institutional and legislative change.
- In your view, what are the key elements of meaningful patient involvement within multidisciplinary teams?
Meaningful involvement requires moving from superficial participation to true institutional representation. A key element is having a 'seat at the table' in scientific governance; for instance, CRIS has established its first Patient Expert Panel to incorporate those with direct experience into the evaluation of scientific projects. It also involves fostering a bidirectional flow, from the laboratory to the bedside and from the bedside back to the lab, ensuring that research is translational and addresses the real-world priorities of patients. Finally, it requires shared decision-making, where patient experience data and patient-reported outcomes are integrated and treated with the same rigour as clinical data.
- What barriers still exist to fully integrating patients as ‘stakeholders’ rather than passive recipients of care?
The most significant barriers are bureaucratic delays and inequality in access. We still see innovative drugs approved by central agencies that take too long to reach the public health system. Additionally, there is often a lack of systematic collection of patient-reported outcomes, which are essential to understanding if a therapy is truly improving a patient's quality of life. Breaking the traditional top-down model requires healthcare institutions to view patient engagement not as an 'extra', but as an essential pillar of medical innovation. We must ensure that a patient’s postcode does not determine their survival and that the unmet needs of the community drive the scientific agenda from the very beginning.
- How can EBMT further support meaningful patient involvement in cancer care?
EBMT can lead by fully integrating the Patient Advocacy Committee (PAC) into all its scientific working parties. This ensures the patient's perspective influences everything from trial design to the EBMT Registry. Furthermore, EBMT can leverage its international influence to advocate for faster and more equitable regulatory paths for advanced therapies across Europe, ensuring that innovation reaches every corner of the continent without discrimination.
- What practical steps can healthcare professionals and institutions take to ensure patient voices are genuinely embedded in clinical practice and policy?
Institutions should formalise the presence of patient representatives in ethics and scientific committees. Practically, this means creating spaces like the CRIS Encounters, where patients and researchers sit together to discuss priorities. Healthcare professionals can also promote the figure of the physician–researcher, who acts as a vital bridge between the lab and the patient. Lastly, implementing digital tools to monitor patient wellbeing in real-time ensures that 'success' is measured by the patient’s actual quality of life.
- In the context of EBMT and this year’s theme, ‘Advancing the Art of Patient Care’, how does this theme resonate with you professionally?
As President of CRIS, it resonates with our relentless commitment to excellence: with 80 million EUR invested and 720 researchers supported in 87 centres globally, we are proving that society is a vital stakeholder in medical progress. In 2026, 'Advancing the Art' means ensuring that research is never just an abstract concept, but a tangible force that turns into lives every single day. It is about combining scientific precision with the urgency of the patient’s needs, accelerating the path from the laboratory to the bedside. Ultimately, the art of care is the commitment to ensure that science always serves the patient's survival. We will continue to build that bridge until we reach our only acceptable goal: that 'no more options' is a phrase that no doctor ever has to say to a patient again.
EBMT 2026 Opening Ceremony
Sunday, March 22, 18:15 – 19:30
VELAZQUEZ