PRECISION-EPID

Project overview

The project entitled “Integration of molecular, genomic, morphological and environmental characteristics to improve precision diagnosis and treatment in fibrosing Interstitial Lung Diseases (Precision-EPID)” is a national multicentre research initiative aimed at advancing personalized precision medicine in the field of Interstitial Lung Diseases (ILDs).

PRECISION-EPID is coordinated by the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL) under the call for Precision Personalized Medicine Research Projects of the Strategic Action in Health 2021–2023, funded by the NextGenerationEU Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), with the Carlos III Health Institute serving as the funding body.

ILDs comprise a heterogeneous group of disorders characterized by inflammation and progressive fibrosis of lung tissue, with significant impacts on respiratory function, quality of life, and patient survival. Their considerable clinical and biological diversity makes early diagnosis and prediction of disease progression particularly challenging. To address this challenge, the R&D project PRECISION-EPID (also referred to as PRECISION-ILD) adopts a multidisciplinary approach based on the integration of clinical, radiological, functional, environmental, molecular, and genetic information, with the aim of creating one of the most comprehensively characterized ILD patient cohorts ever established in Spain.

The project brings together researchers, healthcare professionals, and research centres from across Spain with the objective of improving knowledge of the biological mechanisms involved in ILDs and developing tools to optimize their diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment. To achieve this, PRECISION-EPID integrates clinical, radiological, functional, environmental, molecular, and genetic data from a large patient cohort, applying advanced data analysis and precision medicine approaches.

Main Objectives of PRECISION-EPID:

• Establish a thoroughly characterized national cohort of patients with Interstitial Lung Diseases
• Integrate clinical, environmental, molecular, and genomic information to improve understanding of these disorders.
• Identify biomarkers associated with diagnosis, disease progression, and treatment response.
• Develop predictive models to enable more precise patient stratification
• Promote the integration of personalized medicine into routine clinical practice for Interstitial Lung Diseases.

To achieve these goals, PRECISION-EPID is being carried out through extensive collaboration among hospitals, research institutions, and technology organizations distributed throughout Spain. This collaborative structure combines clinical expertise, technological capabilities, and specialized scientific knowledge to address the challenges associated with Interstitial Lung Diseases in a comprehensive manner. As such, it represents an initiative that promotes protocol harmonization, data interoperability, and the development of joint translational research strategies.

The Institute of Technology and Renewable Energies (ITER) participates in PRECISION-EPID by contributing its expertise in genomic technologies, next-generation sequencing, and biomedical bioinformatics analysis.

Within the project, ITER has been responsible for generating a substantial part of the genomic information used in the scientific analyses, carrying out large-scale sequencing of patients included in the study cohort. This contribution represents one of the largest genomic characterization efforts undertaken in Spain in the field of Interstitial Lung Diseases and constitutes a key component in achieving the project’s scientific objectives.

ITER’s technological infrastructure and extensive experience in next-generation sequencing, omics data management, and computational analysis contribute to the generation of high-quality genomic data that will support future research aimed at improving the understanding and clinical management of these diseases.

The results of PRECISION-EPID will contribute to the development of a more accurate, preventive, and personalized healthcare model. The identification of new biomarkers and risk factors, together with the development of predictive tools based on clinical and genomic data, will improve clinical decision-making and facilitate treatments better tailored to the individual characteristics of each patient.

Furthermore, the project strengthens national capabilities in biomedical research, fosters collaboration among institutions, and consolidates the role of genomic technologies as essential tools for the medicine of the future.