Cancer prevention is becoming increasingly personalised. For Pink October, the Candriam Institute is highlighting Gustave Roussy’s Interception programme, which identifies people who have an increased risk earlier, adapts screening and prevention to individual needs, and contributes to research into the cancer prevention strategies of tomorrow.
Pink October focuses public attention on breast cancer awareness, screening and prevention. It is also a timely reminder that fighting cancer means acting at every stage – from prevention and earlier detection to developing more effective treatments.
The Candriam Institute supports cancer research at Gustave Roussy, France’s and Europe’s leading cancer centre, through the PRISM programme, designated as a University Hospital Institute (IHU). Dedicated to precision oncology, IHU PRISM aims to better understand the specific characteristics of each tumour in order to develop increasingly personalised strategies for cancer prevention, diagnosis and treatment.
For Pink October, we are highlighting another aspect of Gustave Roussy’s work: a programme called Interception, which focuses on identifying people who have an increased risk of developing certain cancers and offering them personalised prevention, screening and follow-up. Prevention is a distinct part of Gustave Roussy’s work, but one that reflects the same broader goal: improving outcomes by acting earlier and advancing knowledge across the cancer care pathway.
Identifying risk before cancer develops
More than 20 million new cancer cases were diagnosed worldwide in 2024, including more than 400,000 in France[1]. Yet cancer risk is not the same for everyone. According to Gustave Roussy, around 30–40% of people who develop cancer could have been identified as being at increased risk in the years before their diagnosis.
Launched in 2021, Interception focuses on this window of opportunity. Increased risk can be due to hereditary predisposition, precancerous lesions, family history or significant exposure to factors such as tobacco. The idea is straightforward: understand a person’s risk earlier and give them practical ways to act on it.
Bringing specialist expertise closer to everyday care
Interception is designed to be a collaboration between Gustave Roussy and family doctors. A doctor who identifies a patient with an increased risk can refer them to the programme. The patient is then invited to an Interception day, a dedicated day at a specialist centre designed to turn an identified risk into a practical prevention plan. Through individual consultations and group workshops, participants can ask questions and better understand their personal risk, the screening options available to them, possible symptoms to watch for and steps they can take to reduce their risk.
Each participant then receives a personalised prevention and screening plan tailored to their risk and circumstances. This might include imaging, nutritional and physical activity advice, support to stop smoking, colonoscopy or gynaecological monitoring. Long-term follow-up is organised in close collaboration with the participant’s usual doctor, so that specialist cancer prevention expertise becomes part of their ongoing healthcare. And if concerning symptoms appear, participants can contact the Interception team directly, which commits to responding to diagnostic requests within two working days.
When prevention also advances research
Interception is not only a care pathway. It also helps Gustave Roussy build knowledge about how personalised cancer prevention can develop.
Participants are asked to provide a brief update each year, creating a cohort that researchers can follow over time. Research connected with Interception explores new risk biomarkers and screening methods, nutritional interventions, immunity and the microbiome, as well as the psychological and social dimensions of prevention.
Clinical studies include work on personalised breast cancer screening, lung cancer screening by CT scan and the potential role of circulating DNA in cancer detection.
Developing and evaluating these approaches requires sustained research over time. Philanthropic funding is therefore key to help give oncology organisations the resources to investigate new ideas and build the evidence needed to improve prevention, screening and care.
Investing in the prevention of tomorrow
Interception shows that progress against cancer does not begin only after a diagnosis. It can start years earlier – by identifying who is most at risk, helping people make informed choices and finding better ways to detect disease sooner.
Interception takes cancer research towards a future in which prevention becomes more personal, specialist cancer expertise works hand in hand with everyday medical care, and research continually improves what can be offered to people at increased risk.
