When clinic and research work hand in hand
When clinic and research work hand in hand
The MedLab Fellowships give outstanding young doctors the chance to research in an ETH lab – a true success story.
Ensuring a fit and future-proof healthcare system requires close collaboration between medicine, engineering and the natural sciences. After all, when these fields work together, new technologies for diagnosis, therapy and prevention can be swiftly and efficiently put into practice. Especially over the past decade, major strides in life sciences, computer science and materials science have been made with the potential to reshape the future of medicine.
ETH Zurich is ideally positioned to make a huge contribution in this space, as it conducts cutting-edge research across all these disciplines. Recent endeavours include the study and application of multi-omics methods (the molecular-biological analysis of processes at the cellular or molecular level), high-resolution imaging techniques that detect tiny structures like proteins in the body, artificial intelligence and data science, as well as biomedical engineering and the creation of new, biocompatible materials and technologies.
© ETH Zürich / Markus Bertschi
“ETH has defined health and medicine as a strategic focus. This requires close collaboration with clinical practice. Projects like the MedLab Fellowships are leading the way.”
ETH Vice President for Research, ETH Foundation Board Member
As a result, about a third of professors at ETH are directly or indirectly involved in medical research. However, many of the initiatives are led by individual researchers who often have no access to the patients, patient data or infrastructure that would enable preclinical findings to be translated into clinical practice. Similarly, healthcare providers often don’t have the research infrastructure or expertise to interpret patient data. This is why closer collaboration between researchers and hospitals, along with new shared platforms for clinical research, is essential for improving the translation of research findings from the lab to real-world medical applications, and for advancing our healthcare system.
Supporting talent at the interface
This is where the ETH MedLab Fellowships come in: by supporting the next generation of doctors in their research training, these funding tools help ensure the success of partnerships between research and clinical practice. Under this programme, junior doctors spend one to three years working in a suitable ETH lab on clinically relevant research questions – allowing them to benefit from the expertise and knowledge of ETH researchers. They learn the approaches used in basic research, apply the corresponding research methodologies and acquire the statistical skills necessary to tackle clinical research questions. In return, ETH researchers gain insight into pressing clinical issues and can focus on application-driven development. Experience has shown that once a collaboration between a clinical partner and ETH researchers has been established, the relationship usually continues after the Fellowship has ended.
Further partners needed
Led by Professor Jörg Goldhahn from ETH’s Institute of Translational Medicine, the programme has proved to be a great success. Between 2019 and 2024, nine MedLab Fellows have been supported, working on a broad spectrum of topics from research into cancer, obesity and nutritional biology to cardiac imaging, thermoregulation, spinal diseases and reproductive medicine. In the process, the programme has strengthened partnerships with four clinics: University Hospitals Zurich, Basel and Balgrist, as well as Inselspital in Bern. The MedLab Fellows have published 14 papers, with four more in preparation or submitted. One research project led to a special MRI procedure that can better predict heart attacks.
The MedLab Fellowships are already supported by several foundations, including the Geistlich-Stucki Foundation for Medical Research. To continue and expand the programme, ETH Zurich is dependent on further funding partners and donors. We would be happy to engage with anyone interested in taking this pioneering collaboration between clinics and research to the next level.
