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- Over 500 attendees took part in an international scientific conference that culminated in a celebratory event.
- The two-day meeting, held at the World Trade Center, brought together leading international experts in cancer and ageing research.
- The conference ended with a celebration featuring artistic performances and inspiring testimonies from researchers, patients, donors, and others.
On Thursday 16 April, IRB Barcelona kicked off its international conference Horizons of Biomedicine: Two Decades of Discovery, an event marking the Institute’s 20th anniversary. The gathering brought together more than 500 participants across both the scientific conference and the anniversary celebration, held on Friday afternoon.
Two decades of science devoted to unravelling disease
In the opening session, IRB Barcelona Director Dr. Francesc Posas went over the Institute’s trajectory since its founding in 2005, highlighting its commitment to basic research as a driving force for medical progress.
“Over these 20 years, IRB Barcelona has become an international leader in research on cancer and other diseases associated with aging,” said Dr. Francesc Posas.
The Institute currently hosts 28 research groups and 9 scientific platforms, and more than 2,800 people have been part of its community over the years.
World-class science and the next generation
The scientific programme featured leading figures in biomedicine, including Joan Massagué, Hans Clevers, Johanna Joyce, Scott Lowe, Marian Walhout, Brenda Andrews, Luke O’Neill, and John Dick. Throughout the conference, they addressed some of the field’s major challenges, from cancer biology and metastasis to metabolism, immunology, and gene regulation. The following young PIs, who represent the future of IRB Barcelona, also gave presentations: Direna Alonso, Alexandra Avgustinova, Ana Victora Lechuga-Vieco, Cristina Mayor-Ruiz, Alejo Rodríguez-Fraticelli, and Stefanie Wculek
Special emphasis was also placed on emerging scientists, with short presentations by early-career researchers who shared the stage with international leaders.
A very special celebration
Beyond the scientific programme, the event culminated on Friday with a celebration involving the IRB Barcelona community, highlighting the Institute’s trajectory and impact.
The event featured a performance by singer Meritxell Nederman and a sand art piece that offers a visual and poetic journey through the history of science.
It also included testimonies from individuals connected to IRB Barcelona, including one of its founders, Dr. Joan Massagué; metastatic breast cancer patient Pilar Ros; Executive Trustee of the Manuel Lao Foundation; and Clara Campàs from venture capital firm Asabys.
Pastry chef Oriol Balaguer presented a cake created especially for the occasion, and the celebration concluded with a performance by the Jove de Barcelona castellers, who—together with the community—built a traditional human tower.
Science with impact on society
Since its founding, IRB Barcelona has maintained a strong commitment to generating knowledge and translating it into real-world impact, fostering innovation, training talent, and engaging with society.
Over the past 20 years, the Institute has contributed more than 3,500 scientific publications and supported the creation of several spin-off companies, helping to bring advances from the lab toward clinical and societal applications.
With this conference and celebration, IRB Barcelona renews its commitment to advancing toward a world free of disease.
About IRB Barcelona
The Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) pursues a society free of disease. To this end, it conducts multidisciplinary research of excellence to cure cancer and other diseases linked to ageing. It establishes technology transfer agreements with the pharmaceutical industry and major hospitals to bring research results closer to society, and organises a range of science outreach activities to engage the public in an open dialogue. IRB Barcelona is an international centre that hosts 400 researchers and more than 30 nationalities. Recognised as a Severo Ochoa Centre of Excellence since 2011, IRB Barcelona is a CERCA centre and member of the Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology (BIST).
